Care and materials

Every piece in the range is the same material and wants the same treatment, so these instructions apply to all sixteen shapes.

Materials

• Glass — lead-free crystal, hand-blown. No lead, no cut decoration, no applied colour except on the Onyx, which is tinted through the body.
• Stopper — none. Every piece is supplied open.
• Capacity — 0.75 L to 1.95 L depending on the shape, stated on each product page.
• Weight — 1.2 lb to 3.3 lb.

Washing

Hand wash only. Warm water, no detergent. Detergent leaves a film that dulls the glass and, worse, taints the next wine you put in it; if something needs shifting, use a teaspoon of uncooked rice with warm water and swirl it.

• Never put a Marqorin piece in a dishwasher. Thin hand-blown walls and a heated drying cycle are a bad combination, and it will eventually craze.
• Never use boiling water on cold glass or cold water on a piece that has been in sunlight. Thermal shock cracks crystal.
• Avoid bottle brushes with metal shafts. A plastic-stemmed brush or a long soft brush is safer.

The coiled shapes

The Helix, Serpentine, Ribbon and Horn cannot be scrubbed, because no brush follows the curve. Fill with warm water, swirl, and drain from the lip; repeat twice. Stubborn tannin staining lifts with warm water and rice, or with a proprietary decanter cleaner used exactly as the label says.

Drying

Drain upside down at an angle on a rack, never flat, or water sits in the shoulder. A wooden decanter stand is worth the money if you own more than one piece. Air-dry the plain shapes; dry the Shell with a lint-free cloth, because water sits in the optic ribs and leaves marks that then need a proper wash to remove.

Do not store a piece with any water in it. A sealed damp decanter grows a smell within a week.

Storage and handling

Store upright with nothing stacked inside. Carry a full piece with one hand under the base, not by the neck — hand-blown necks are the thinnest part of the vessel. Keep out of direct sunlight, which will not harm clear glass but will slowly fade the Onyx tint.

Decanting, briefly

A young tannic red wants a wide surface and twenty to sixty minutes: the Meridian, Plume or Harbour. An older wine wants a narrow neck, a gentle pour and much less time: the Aurora, Petal or Cove. White wine rarely needs decanting at all, though a carafe is a good way to bring a bottle up from fridge temperature. If a wine has thrown a sediment, stand the bottle upright for a day first and stop pouring when the sediment reaches the shoulder.

Breakage

If a piece arrives cracked or broken, send a photograph to info@marqorin.com within 14 days and we will replace it. Do not post broken glass back to us.

Questions

If something is staining, clouding or smelling and you are not sure why, email us with a photograph. We have seen most of it.