Thoughts On What Is The Difference Between A Wine Decanter And Carafe
You can now use a wine aerator too, these oxygenate the wine as it passes through the narrow tube drawing in air through a clever venturi effect. My suggestion is to add a filter to this device to enable a time saving way to enjoy wine rather than waiting for a decanter to work.
Good for the traditionalists though!
You mention a stopper, and I think traditionally decanters have a stopper as they are intended for port and sherry as well as wine. Carafes never have a stopper and are often used for serving wine with meals in Italy and Spain, and not for port or sherry storage at home.
Choosing The Right Decanter
Youll notice that some wines will take longer to oxygenate than others. For example, full-bodied red wines with generally need more time in a decanter. To speed this process up, choose a decanter with a wide base to increase the amount of oxygen exposure to the wine.
Here are some examples to consider:
- Full-bodied Red Wines : Use a decanter with a wide base.
- Medium-bodied Red Wines : medium-sized decanter
- Light-bodied Red Wines : serve in a small to medium-sized decanter thats been chilled.
- White and Rosé Wines: decanting isnt necessary, although you can use a small chilled decanter.
When it comes down to choosing, get a decanter you love. With that said, seek one thats easy to fill, pour, and clean. As obvious as this seems, youd be surprised at how many beautiful decanters are a pain to use!
Get the Wine 101 Course FREE with the purchase of Wine Folly: Magnum Edition.
How To Clean A Wine Decanter
Cleaning wine decanters actually isnt a big deal. The most important thing is to handle it with care to avoid damaging it. Follow these tips to clean a wine decanter:
- Clean the decanter as soon as possible after using it. The longer stains can sit inside, the harder it will be to remove them. So even if you dont want to clean it the same day, at least rinse it with warm water. In any case, dont keep the wine in the decanter overnight.
- Dont put your wine decanter into the dishwasher. It will probably not get perfectly clean inside, and the detergents can leave unpleasant smells in it. Thus, better clean it by hand.
- Wash your decanter with either warm or hot water. But never use boiling water as it can cause the glass to shatter.
- Also, dont use cleaning alcohol .
- Stay away from sponges or brushes for plates or cutlery because they can leave scratches on the glass. Use special decanter cleaning tools instead.
- Cotton and linen clothes can leave tiny fibers inside the decanter. And when you fill it next time, these fibers can make their way into the wine. Thus, better use a microfiber cloth.
- Use your cleaning cloth only for your decanter and wine glasses but not for other dishes. By making this distinction, you can ensure that no food particles or odors get into your wine.
- To dry the decanter after cleaning it, use a microfiber cloth. Then either place it upside down to air-dry it or blow it dry with a hair-drier.
You May Like: Do They Still Make Annie Green Springs Wine
The Alternative To Decanting: Swirling Wine In Your Glass
Swirling basically does the same as decanting, at least in terms of aeration. By moving the wine in your glass, you let oxygen get in touch with it and do its job.
More Details on Swirling Wine: WHY DO YOU SWIRL WINE BEFORE DRINKING?
For many light wines, this process might actually be a sufficient alternative to decanting. However, some wines need more time in contact with air than just a couple of seconds. And you probably dont want to swirl your wine around for half an hour. So for full-bodied wines, a decanter still is the better solution.
Also, swirling wont help you get unwanted particles out of the wine. So if your wine has sediment or cork pieces in it, there is no way around decanting.
It’s Time For The Perfect Pour
While a wine decanter isn’t essential to enjoy a glass of wine, using one can help you maximize the experience by letting your wine breathe, particularly if its a red. Best of all, you don’t have to be a sommelier or seasoned oenophile to use a decanter.
Once you have a few handy tips in your back pocket , you’ll be decanting and drinking wine like a pro in no time. For more ideas on how to broaden your wine knowledge and enhance your wine-drinking adventures, don’t miss our Usual Wines blog.
You May Like: Which Wine Has The Least Sugar
How To Choose The Right Decanter For Your Wine
If you are a regular wine drinker and have tasted more than a few wines, we can comfortably guess you might have a favorite. Every wine drinker has a prized possession, a basic taste when it comes to wines.
When choosing the right decanter, you not only have to choose the one that appeals to you, but also the one that will best serve the purpose for your favorite wine.
This section of the article will tell you more!
Firstly, when looking at the variety of decanters that are available these days, one basic rule that you have to follow irrespective of what wine you drink, is to go for a lead-free crystal decanter.
Lead can seep into the wine and be toxic to your body, thus should be avoided at all costs.
Now, if you are a rich red wine lover and buy bottles of full-bodied reds like Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Tannat, Monastrell, Tempranillo, etc., you should go for a wide based decanter.
These need more oxidation and aeration and will require a greater surface area.
Similarly, medium bodied reds like Merlot, Sangiovese, Barbera can work with medium sized decanters and while looking for a decanter to serve Pinot Noir and Beaujolais, dont bother much.
A small, fancy looking decanter will also serve the purpose.
For white wines, generally, decanting isnt necessary and you can go for the one you think looks the coolest!
Still Confused?
How Do I Know If My Wine Needs To Be Decanted
The contents of a bottle can be evenly distributed across the top of the bottle. However, some wines can require extra aeration to let the fruit and texture shine. For example, ripe wines can benefit from a little aeration. If you taste a ripe wine, you might notice the tannins and sugar have blended together.
When you decant the wine, this can be less noticeable, and youll experience more flavor. On the other hand, if the grape sugars havent already blended with the tannins, it might be a good idea to decant the wine. For example, a Cabernet Sauvignon might benefit from a little aeration.
When you decant a Cabernet, youll see the wine has separated into its individual grapes. Decanting your wine is the best way to figure out which wines you like best.
Don’t Miss: How To Price Wine
How Do I Properly Decant A Bottle Of Wine
First, you need to make sure you have the right decanter. We will be using decanter method, as this post will focus on decanting wine. Most experts recommend the method of pouring the wine into a glass. When decanting, you need to remove the cork from the bottle before pouring.
This is important because after you pour the wine, the cork should be covered in liquid to prevent it from sticking to the inside of the bottle. Otherwise, the cork can pop, causing a potential leak. Before pouring the wine, you should: Carefully put the cork back into the bottle .
Carefully remove the old wine wine decanter from the bottle. Place the new wine decanter over the top of the new wine bottle. Remove the metal stopper thats attached to the end of the wine decanter.
Best Crystal: Onearf Wine Decanter And Carafe
Courtesy of Amazon
-
Unique mountain design in decanter base
-
Easy to clean
-
Sealing cover keeps wine fresh in the decanter for days
-
Can be difficult to hold
Crafted into the base of this decanter from Onearf is an iceberg. Yes, an iceberg. This allows for more oxygen across the surface area of the wine, allowing aeration to be completed in half the time. Made from non-lead crystal glass and comes with a drying rack, this decanter is elegant, functional, and great for everyday use.
The decanter measures 8.9 inches at its widest diameter and can hold up to 40.5 ounces. Its unique cap design connects the decanter to the wine bottle allowing you to pour from the decanter or pour the wine back into the bottle after aeration. The cap also helps to prevent spills and preserve the wine for your next use.
Material: Crystal | Capacity: 40.5 ounces | Dimensions: 9 x 8.9 x 8.9 inches | Weight: 2.75 pounds
You May Like: Sub For Shaoxing Wine
Which Wines Dont Need Decanting
One connoisseur strongly recommends decanting all wines, including the sparkling wines and white wines although there are also others who strongly oppose decanting sparkling wines including champagne. He argues that the yeast used in the fermentation of champagne should be removed prior to drinking. Too much yeast in the body can cause an imbalance, resulting in illnesses.
How Do You Use A Decanter
The process of decanting seems pretty easy enough because you just have to transfer wine into another vessel, right? But, there are a few things we should note so that we can successfully transfer the wine without disturbing the sediments so they will remain at the bottom of the bottle.
Decanters come in many shapes and sizes and are either made from glass or crystal. Usually, wine is decanted into vessels that have an easy-pour neck and at the same time, has a shape that is not difficult to clean. If you dont have a decanter or if youre on a tight budget, fret not, because you can always use your glass jug or pitcher from your refrigerator. If you already have your wine and your vessel, then youre ready.
There are two reasons for decanting: aeration and removing sediments. Both shall be further explained later on. But, for now, here is the proper way to decant your wine.
5. Keep an eye out for the neck of the bottle. You can also place a lighted candle beneath the bottle so you can clearly see the sediments and the setup would be like this:
6. Once you see the sediments settling at the neck of the bottle, this is the time to stop pouring. Sometimes sediments are really tiny and its hard to know if they are at the neck yet but one way to know is looking if the wine becomes cloudy, then youll want to stop pouring. Discard the remaining wine with the sediments. 7. After some time in the decanter, the wine is now ready to be served to the guests.
Also Check: One Hope Wine Pyramid Scheme
Choosing The Right Wine Decanter For Your Needs
If you enjoy red wine or drink more affordable wine on a regular basis, then using a decanter is a great idea. Decanting may not look like much, but the increased oxygen exposure to wine greatly improves the taste by softening astringent tannins and letting fruit and floral aromas come out.
If youre searching for a decanter to buy, here are some pragmatic considerations to help you decide which decanter to get.
Why Do You Use A Decanter
Using a decanter serves just one purpose, enhancing the flavor of wine. It’s really that simple. That’s why the primary reason to use a decanter is to ensure a bottle of wine is consumed in the best possible state. If you run a high-end bar or are just a wine connoisseur, you probably have a wine cellar full of wines that should be decanted prior to serving. In fact, many vintners expect their wine varietals to be decanted so you can truly appreciate the complexity of flavor that they worked to achieve.
The bigger issue is when to decant wine and how long to decant wine. Generally, decanting should only be done on higher-quality vintages and aged wine. These wines can be decanted anywhere from 30 minutes to 4 hours to draw out as much depth as possible. If you don’t have that much time, 15-20 minutes is also acceptable. You shouldn’t invest the time in decanting newer and less expensive wines because they can lose their flavor more quickly when exposed to the air. Many types of white wine should also not be decanted because they don’t have enough tannins to really benefit from it. Instead, an aerator would be recommended.
Don’t Miss: How To Get Red Wine Out Of A White Shirt
Air On The Side Of Caution
The question of whetheror how longto aerate a wine can generate extensive debate among wine professionals. Some feel that an extra boost of oxygen can open up a wine and give it extra life. If youve opened a wine and it seems unexpressive upon first taste, it cant hurt to try moderate aeration in a decanter to see if that transforms it.
Others feel that decanting makes a wine fade faster, and that a wine is exposed to plenty of oxygen when you swirl it in your glass. Plus, it can be fun to experience the full evolution of wine as it opens up in your glass you might miss an interesting phase if you decant too soon.
A particularly fragile or old wine should only be decanted 30 minutes or so before drinking. A younger, more vigorous, full-bodied red wineand yes, even whitescan be decanted an hour or more before serving. At some tastings, wines are decanted for hours beforehand and may show beautifully, but these experiments can be risky and are best done by people very familiar with how those wines age and evolve.
If youre curious, experiment for yourself with multiple bottles of the same wineone decanted and one not, or bottles decanted for different lengths of timeand see which you prefer.
More about decanting:
Popular Wine Decanter Brands
With many brands on the decanter market to choose between, its nice to have an idea of their reputations going into your search so you can narrow your options down. To provide you with a summary of what customers think of each of the main decanter brands, we looked at reviews of their decanters online.
Recommended Reading: Best Red Wine For Keto
How Do I Choose A Wine Decanter
There are various factors that determine whether you should buy a decanter or not. You need to consider how much wine you like drinking and where you will be storing it. A wine decanter can hold up to 2 litres of wine, so if you like drinking more than half a bottle at once then this would be ideal as it will save you from having to pour out one glass every time you want another! If you store your wine in a cupboard or on a shelf, your wine may get oxidised over time.
This is because when it comes into contact with oxygen it turns brown. To prevent this happening, decanting your wine ensures that all of the wine goes through a process called lees-removal. Lees are sedimentary material left behind by dead yeast cells. This means that when wine sits for long periods of time, its natural acidity levels fall and alcohol evaporates away, resulting in a flat taste.
Does Wine Aeration Remove Sulfites
A little-known fact about aeration is that it also encourages the rapid evaporation of sulfite preservatives. These compounds are some of the most noxious compounds found in nature and can cause bitter taste even at very low concentrations. When these molecules are present, they mask the more subtle tastes and aromas of the wine.
The process of aeration is commonly described as letting a wine breathe. This simple process shifts the flavor profile of a wine, so it becomes more mellow, and the sharp, tannic characteristics of those full-flavored reds are significantly reduced. Decanting wine also makes it very easy to remove any sediment that has collected in the bottom of the wine bottle and avoid the distasteful particles that spoil the experience of a nice glass of wine.
Don’t Miss: Best Red Wine For Lasagna
How Does A Wine Decanter Work
Some wines are difficult to drink on their own, but that doesnt mean they cant be enjoyed. It just takes a little know-how. Decanting wine is a process of removing sediment from the bottom of the wine bottle by pouring it through a special container called a decanter. This allows the wine to breathe and releases its bouquet, making it taste better.
The decanter does this by aerating the wine, which increases the amount of oxygen in the air inside the bottle. When you pour wine into a decanter, it creates room for more air to flow into the bottle while also cooling it down. The key to a good decanter is proper aeration.
One of the first steps to aerating your wine is to pour a glass of wine that you would drink with a traditional decanter. That glass of wine should be chilled and you can find this method is also called chilling your wine. You can also add ice cubes or cubes of ice to the glass first, so its easier to chill the wine down quickly.
Youll have to shake the glass after youve poured it, but that will also help to release the wines aromas and bring the temperature down. You should also tilt the glass while shaking the glass to get more air in the glass. Next, you should pour the wine through a decanter. A modern wine decanter has a narrow neck that needs to be opened a little for your decant to fit.
