Should i use a decanter

On average decanting, time should be no longer than 15 — 30 minutes before serving. Medium Bodied Red Wine — For a medium-bodied red wine like Merlot the decanter of choice would be a medium-sized wine decanter. On Average decanting, time should be no longer than 30 — 60 minutes before serving.

Full-Bodied Red Wines — For a full-bodied red wine like Cabernet Sauvignon the decanter of choice would be a large wine decanter. On average decanting, time should be no longer than 1 — 2 hours before serving but this can reach up to 3 hours spent on some older wines. Port should be treated in the same way as a full-bodied red wine. The aim is to release the flavors and aroma from the port and to achieve this the decanter of choice would be a large wine decanter.

Depending on the age of the port on average you would decant for 1 -2 hours before serving. The best wine decanters should be made from high-quality and well-finished glass and designed in such a way that they help your wine breathe. You want to release the flavors and aromas of the wine before drinking so a good decanter is required.

Our recommendation is Riedel, they have been making glassware from and personally, I cannot recommend their products enough, they are of the best quality, the finish is exceptional and the decanting process is perfect! Riedel offers a wide range of decanters in different sizes to obtain the optimal amount of oxygen for each type of wine. Our recommended Riedel Decanters can be found on our recommended best decanters page here.

Unfortunately, wine does not last forever so there will come a very sad moment in your life when you may need to dispose of wine from a decanter. It is important to know how longer wine keeps in a decanter so you can enjoy it without having to pour any of it down the drain. If you need to store wine in a decanter it is always recommended you keep it refrigerated. The table below gives the recommended time scales for keeping your wine refrigerated in a decanter.

If you would like to read more about how long wine lasts we have a full reference guide for opened and unopened wine which you can read here.

If you have wine that tastes a little like vinegar check out our in-depth article that explains why. The article can be found here. If you drink red wine and it stains your lips or teeth check out our article which provides 14 full proof ways to help prevent you from looking like a vampire. As mentioned previously one of the main reasons for decanting wine is to add more oxygen to the wine so it is important that you decant your wine correctly. When transferring the wine from the bottle to the decanter it is important that you pour the wine directly onto the sides of the decanter as you want as much oxygen on the surface of the wine as possible.

In addition to pouring the wine onto the sides of the decanter, it is perfectly acceptable to take the decanter by the neck and swirl the wine inside the decanter to expose the surface of the wine to as much oxygen as possible.

You are wanting to bring the surface of the wine into as much contact as possible with oxygen so a good swirl will always help! Another reason for decanting wine is to separate sediment for the wine. Sediment tends to be found in an aged bottle of wine and it does not make for a pleasant experience. When decanting an aged bottle of wine you want to pour the wine gently into the decanter keeping your eye on the neck of the bottle and as soon as you see sediment appear at the neck of the bottle you stop pouring.

Yes, it really is that simple! Apart from separating wine from sediment, the point of decanting your wine is to expose it to the oxygen in the air. A decanter with a very narrow neck and modest base is going to limit the amount of oxygen that touches your wine.

On the other hand, a large wine decanter with a wide base and fanned opening will allow more oxygen to mingle with those tannins. I recommend decanting everything -- even white wine, if you feel like it.

Unlike other adult beverages, the beauty of wine is that it goes through several stages of life. From the maceration process when the wine is hanging out with the bits and bobbles of the grape all the way through bottling, aging, and then decanting, wine continues to evolve. Once you uncork your bottle, it will continue to evolve.

Experiment with decanting your favorite wines for 2, 10, 30, or even 60 minutes and see what changes you can decipher. Name required. Email required. Message required. What Is a Wine Decanter? More important than tannins: alcohol content.

With such high alcohol content, the possibility for a dramatic chemical reaction from oxidation is much lower. Wine decanters are specifically designed to encourage interaction between liquid and air, always without a cap, and often elaborate and seriously breakable in design. Whiskey decanters, on the other hand, tend to be built for stability often with a wide bottom and just straight-up shiny impressiveness.

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