Is Your Glass of Wine Really “One Serving” of Wine?

So you only had 2 glasses of wine last night?  Ok, so what does “a glass” of wine mean? One serving of wine is technically 5 ounces. When was the last time you were served 5 oz of wine in a restaurant or bar? Probably not recently. Most places tend to serve portions that are significantly larger than 5 ounces  (unless you are in a really expensive restaurant where they actually do pour a 5 oz glass of wine for $15!).

Here is an example. I went out with several of my girlfriends to a bar/restaurant called Peter’s on the upper west side. I ordered a cabernet. I actually like drinking red wine from a larger glass. But this glass was the size of a fish bowl and it was almost filled with wine. It had to have been almost 12 ounces. Of course, it’s nice to get good value for your money.

On the other hand, there are a few “cons” to this jumbo glass of wine.

– More calories than you think. This is not a 80 calorie glass of wine, but close to 160 to 200 (if it was 10-12 ounces)
– You may feel compelled psychologically to have another glass … because after all, so far you’ve only had one glass of wine. But if we are talking in standard serving sizes, that one jumbo glass of wine was really 2 or more glasses.
– The guys around you suddenly start looking cuter than they really are…

More alcohol is consumed from larger wider glasses
Studies have shown that we consistently drink more when served from larger wider wine glasses, such as those used for red wine as compared to a smaller slender glass used for white wine.  Dr. Brian Wansink, in his book Mindless Eating, has done numerous experiments on people showing how we eat and drink more than we think.  Check out this link for details on these studies. These particular studies were done with with college students and professional bartenders showing that we pour more and drink more from wider larger glasses.

Bottom line:
1. All glasses of wine are not created equal (and I’m not just talking about taste!)  A “glass”  is not necessarily the standard serving size of 5 ounces.

2. When drinking at home, use smaller more narrow glasses rather than shorter wider glasses. You will drink less whether it be alcohol, milk, juice, etc.

3. Or if you have your heart set on drinking from your jumbo red wine glasses, just be aware of how much wine you are pouring!

Check out these previous posts:

Calories in alcohol
Does alcohol cause weight gain?
Tips to deal with the dreaded hangover