A highball glass is designed to hold a drink with a high ratio of a non-alcoholic mixer, like soda or tonic water, and ice. The glasses generally range in capacity from 11 ounces on the smaller side to 15 ounces on the larger side. Choose a smaller highball glass for things like G & T’s, where an excess of tonic would throw off the balance, and a larger glass for something like a Pimm’s cup where you need room for garnish and fruit slices. The height of a highball glass allows for high volume with a small surface area, which helps retain carbonation. A highball glass is generally shorter and wider than a Collins glass, but the two are similar enough that one can stand in for the other. We assembled this list with the help of glassware and spirits experts to represent a broad range of designs and price points, from high-tech ultra-strong glasses from Japan to hand-blown glasses from Vermont. To make this list, the glass had to stand out with its artfulness, its utility, or, ideally, both. Price-wise, some of these you wouldn’t sweat a dinner guest dropping, while others you’ll want to take care of and pass on to your kids. All of them, however, are worth considering. We may receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.
Japanese Whiskey Highball Glasses
Japanese whiskey highballs are wildly popular right now, and they’re one of the few highball drinks that aren’t actually served in a highball glass. In Japan, they use one glass for whisky highballs and a more traditional highball glass for other kinds of highball drinks. This is because Japanese highballs are served bracingly cold, which requires a thicker glass (preferably chilled) to retain that coldness. “I love the two Japanese approaches,” says Jared Brown, co-founder and master blender of Sipsmith Spirits in London. “Order a gin and tonic (technically a highball), and it comes in a paper-thin glass seemingly filled with a long hand-carved ice cube. Yet, if you order a ‘highball,’ it comes in a frozen beer mug with a handle, frozen. That’s key to a great highball.” Here’s our recommendation if that’s what you’re hoping to recreate.
