The moment you start using a decanter is the moment you become a true oenophile. Your enlightenment begins when you can walk around knowing what most people don’t. The secret to drinking wine is allowing your grownup juice to air out in a well-made decanter. As a matter of fact, you are also learning the value of patience. Most people see a bottle of wine, unscrew, pour, and start drinking right away. This is fine, and most of us are guilty of needing a bottle immediately, but trust me on this. You need to start decanting.

What does decanting even mean? 

Have you ever opened a really nice bottle of red wine just for it to taste like any other red you have had? Feels a bit like you’ve been cheated or your taste buds just aren’t what they used to be. That’s exactly why you need to let your wine sit out for a while. The reason we use decanters is to make any wine taste a million times better. Exposing wine to air removes the acidic taste of younger wines, and brings out the flavor of older wines. By introducing oxygen to a liquid, you’re allowing the wine to “breathe.” This process, called aeration, enhances a wine’s flavor by softening the tannins (aka what creates the drying sensation in your mouth when you drink red wine) and releases any gasses that have developed due to the lack of oxygen.

The 4 rules of decanting:

1. If the wine has been stored on its side and has any chance of sediment, you need to let that bottle stand for 12-16 hours for the sediment to settle.
2. There are two routes you can take for decanting: shock decanting & regular decanting. Shock decanting is typically used on younger wines, where the bottle of wine is tipped vertical and poured with the force of gravity into a decanter. Also known as quick splash decanting, shock decanting is meant to vigorously expose the wine to oxygen and further accelerate the aeration process. The second route, regular decanting, is where you pour the wine slowly into the decanter, without much splash, to allow for older wines to maintain their structure, color, and texture. This allows the pourer to spot any sediment and try to avoid it. A decanter, however, does not filter out the sediment. Interestingly enough, one of a sommelier’s biggest responsibilities is to catch any sediment before it permeates into the wine.
3. White wines and rosé’s usually do not need to be decanted. However, if you open a bottle and the wine smells off, then it’s okay to decant for about 15 minutes.
4. There are different times of decanting for different reds. For example, a Cabernet Sauvignon requires 2 hours of decanting, while a Cabernet Franc only requires 30-60 minutes. Always make sure you check to see how long your bottle is supposed to be decanted for the best flavor possible.