How do you decant wine?
It’s a question that you’ll need an answer to sooner or later and here’s why:
The process of transferring the wine from its bottle into another container is the process of decanting a wine. Although decanting is the basic process of pouring the drink from its bottle to a wine container, however it requires extreme care and precaution since it is essential that the sediment of the wine is not disturbed. The glass containers often chosen as storing wine in a decanter have an easy to pour neck to allow the wine to be served with ease and are available in different shapes and sizes.
Benefits of Decanting Wine:
Although, the process of decanting requires extreme patience and care, however it allows the taste and flavor of the wine to be enhanced greatly.
- Removing Sediments
The sediment present in the wines tends to settle at the bottom of the bottle over time and tend to cause the drink to have an unpleasant taste. Older wines are expected to have larger amounts of settled sediments as compared to the younger one. In order to prevent the taste of the drink from spoiling it is essential that the sediments are removed, which is possible during decanting. In the process of decanting, it is trivial that the sediments settled at the bottom of the bottle are not disturbed and the wine transferred to the glass container does not contain any sediments. This ensures that the drink being served maintains its true flavors and does not have any unpleasant taste.
- Introducing oxygen into the wine
The different wines available tend to have a range of aromas which need to be released gradually in order to ensure that the drinker enjoys the drink fully. The aromas are released if the wine is able to breath. The process of aeration allows oxygen to be circulated in the wine causing the flavours to soften and, hence releasing the aromas. Decanting a wine allows oxygen to be incorporated into the drink, hence allowing the different aromas present to be mixed and released. This allows the drinker to not only appreciate the flavours of the drink but also the aromas associated with it.
- No cork accidents occur
In a traditional wine bottle, a cork is used to prevent the aromas from being released or the flavours from being spoiled, however while serving this often leads to cork accidents to take place. The cork tends to break causing its particles to be mixed in the drink and hence causing customer dissatisfaction. When a wine is decanted, there is no need for a cork and hence it prevents cork related accidents.
How long can you leave wine in a decanter?
The answer to this question primarily depends on the type of wine you have. Generally, the decanting time period can range between 30 minutes to 3 hours.
Wines that need to be decanted:
Although, decanting a wine does not cause any harm to the wine, however not all wines need to be decanted. The wines that require decanting are usually the old, full bodied red wines. Wines like cabernet sauvignon and Burgundy require a 30-minute decanting process since it ensures that the different aromas captured in the drink are properly aerated and are mixed, before the drink is served. In many wine tastings, it is a common practice to decant the red, full bodied wines to ensure that they have exceptional tastes.
Wines that should not be decanted:
Decanting tends to benefit almost all the available wines, even if it only impacts the release of their aromas, however sparkling wines should never be decanted. A fairly common example of a sparkling wine is champagne which tastes better when served from a freshly opened bottle. Sparkling wines are famous for their fizz and the tingling sensation caused by them; however, the process of decanting and aeration can cause them to lose their fizz. Hence, sparkling wines should not be decanted since it causes the wine to lose its taste and fizz.
How to decant wines:
The most important aspect of decanting a wine is to remove the sediments from the drink, hence it is important to allow the sediments to settle at the bottom of the bottle and then remove it with care. The following steps allow a wine to be decanted easily.
- Leave the wine bottle upright in a vertical position overnight to allow all the sediments to be settled at the base of the bottle.
- Select the desired decanter and uncork the wine bottle.
- Transfer the wine from the bottle to the decanter by tilting the bottle at an angle lower than 45 degrees. This ensures that the wine is transferred slowly and does not disturb the sediments.
- Throughout the pouring process, check for any sediments that might be flowing along with the wine. In order to do so use a candle or a flashlight.
- In case a sediment is detected, leave the wine bottle in an upright position and begin from step 1.
How do you decant a wine without a decanter?
This is a bit unorthodox and isn’t really acceptable in wine enthusiasts but you can still decant a wine with same process. Instead of a decanter you can use a pitcher or a blender.
Do you need a decanter for wine?
No, you can use alternatives such as a pitcher or a blender. However, a blender is still advised.
Decanter vs Carafe:
Carafe are similar to a decanter in regard to their purpose. Both the containers are made from glass and are used to serve drinks; however, decanters are used to serve wines while carfares are used for other drinks like coffee and juices. Carafes do not have a handle or a stopper, hence making them unfit for serving wines. In regard to the shape, carfares have a tall and a narrower structure while decanters are round with a tapered neck.
In order to enhance the experience, taste and flavour of a wine, it is often preferred to decant it, however not all wines require to be decanted. Although, decanting improves the overall experience of a wine, sparkling wines should never be decanted. The process of decanting is an extremely simple one, however it requires extreme care since no sediment should be transferred to the decanter. The overall process of decanting a wine leads to the drinker being able to enjoy the drink fully.