My mother has always said she prefers to drink from crystal over glass. She seems to think it tastes different and the contents react differently to what’s holding it. I tend to agree with her.
Wrong or right, you’d think you could just fool her and say it is crystal. Wrong.
There are ways you can tell if you are drinking from crystal or glass.
One way to tell is by holding the glass up to a light and seeing if it reflects a prism. If it does, it is crystal. Crystal has a higher index of dispersion and refraction then glass, so any light that passes through the object will separate and bend.
The easiest way to tell is using the tap test. Give the rim of the glass a light flick with your nail to hear what noise it produces. If it’s a high pitched “ping” noise, it means it’s crystal. If it makes a hard noise, like a “plop”, it means it’s glass. There is also the swirling finger test around the rim of the glass. Run your finger around an empty glass and if it makes a high pitch hum, it’s crystal.
For my mother, it comes down to the taste – she can taste if it’s crystal or glass! Now that’s a trick I think would take a long time to perfect.
