Decanting serves two main purposes. The first is to remove sediment that can accumulate in older wines, usually those that have been aged for 20 to 50 years. Over time, these wines can develop deposits that settle at the bottom of the bottle. To remove the sediment, the wine is poured slowly and carefully from the bottle into a decanter. As the wine is poured, eventually sediment will start to appear in the neck of the bottle. Shortly after this happens, the pouring is stopped, leaving the sediment (and sadly, some wine) behind in the bottle.
The second reason to decant is aeration, the topic of this article. In this case, the pouring does not need to be gentle as the purpose is to introduce air into the wine. Aeration allows further flavors to develop and the wine components to better integrate into the wine, including the tannins that may be too harsh or aggressive upon bottle opening.
Aeration is not always necessary, such as for an aromatic white wine where it can lose its delicate perfume if exposed to too much air as those wine components are very volatile. A full-bodied Chardonnay, however, can benefit from a shorter 15-30 minutes or more aeration.
And for reds? Which ones benefit from decanting?
As in most things in life... it depends.
Wine is a living entity that changes over time. Upon bottling, most wines will not be at their prime as they have not had a chance to integrate flavors and settle from all the molecular excitement of the winemaking process.
After 1 to 6 months, some wines will be at their peak and will deteriorate from there. Those are typically NOT the wines discussed in this Substack. Nor are all of the wines discussed here necessarily intended to age more than 2-3 years after bottling.
Back to decanting.
Some wine will improve with time and perhaps start developing new flavors from bottle aging. In this case, flavor components in the wine interact with one another and with air introduced in very small amounts through the cork or screwcap (this is not a typo, some screwcaps are intended to allow air into the wine).
This flavor development will continue to improve to a point, let’s call this “peak wine,” and from there the wine will start to deteriorate gradually until no more fruit flavors remain. If it is too far past “peak wine,” decanting can be a detriment by accelerating the wine deterioration.
Ultimately, decanting is a judgment call which is also influenced by your wine preference. Tricky, I know! The good thing is, the more you do it, the more you figure it out!
Let’s review my decanting over the last few weeks while interacting with the following three wines:
• The 2021 Le Cigare Volant (a.k.a. the “UFO” wine, see last week’s post link below) – a California blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Cinsault
• A 2021 Etna Rosso – an Italian wine made with the black Nerello Mascalese grape.
• A 2011 Left Bank Bordeaux - a French blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot
Different countries, different grapes, different winemaking, different age categories, but a common thread – the immense benefit of decanting!
With all three wines (tasted on different days), I started by taking a couple sips. I was disappointed each time. I store them at 10 degrees Celsius, so I let them warm to the proper serving temperature of 14-18 degrees Celsius, and I tried them again.
I was underwhelmed.
With the UFO wine, I thought, “This is just not my favorite style. That is OK, it is a simpler light-bodied red. I find it a little thin, but this may appeal to others.” Never even thought of decanting it.
I had it again the next day and bang!
Hello wine flavors and body!
Contrary to what we hear, simply opening a bottle is not enough to let it “breathe.” Breathing, or exposure to air (aeration!), requires exposed wine surface area. For a 750 ml bottle of wine, the surface area in the neck of the bottle is an insignificant 3.14 cm2. But drinking half the bottle, introducing more air by pouring several small pours, and waiting 24 hours DOES introduce more air and exposes more surface area! This is what happened to my bottle of Bonny Doon’s Le Cigare Volant.
Now let’s discuss the next wine, the Etna Rosso, whose vineyards grow on the slope of the active Sicilian volcano: Mount Etna. I have not tried many of these wines, but I like the level of tannin, the ability to pair with flavorful meals without being overpowered, not to mention their high quality to price ratio. I had been looking forward to opening this bottle all week!
My impressions after the first sip were that it was thin, with tannins that seemed separate from the rest of the wine. Strange. I am not sure I have ever experienced such a lack of tannin integration. I had two parallel textural elements in my mouth: a thin liquid and tannins. Nice tannins, but just not where I want them to be. Tannins typically contribute to body, and in this case, they did not. They were just hanging around by themselves, being selfishly independent!
I decided to decant.
Sampling throughout the meal prep, I noticed an evolution. After decanting for 45 minutes, the tannins were now fully integrated into the rest of the wine, resulting in a very pleasing moderate body. Amazing! The next morning I was still thinking of this wine!
The next day, I opened the 2011 left bank Bordeaux!
First sip.
Oh man, here we go again! I was disappointed. “This wine is past its prime,” I reacted.
I expected the old-world subtlety, particularly in an older wine. I tasted ripe black fruit, bordering on stewed fruit, which was not unexpected. What I also expected, however, was more complexity beyond fruit.
I decided to decant for 15 minutes, no longer, fearing the fruit would fade.
Another few sips – nice! It was going in the right direction! More body, more flavors!
I waited another 15 minutes resulting in more positive evolution. As the meal was enjoyed and the decanter was gradually emptied, pour by pour, I witnessed different flavor entities pop up one by one like a high school class roll call!
Vanilla? (here)
Cinnamon? (yes)
Cloves? (Good evening Ms. Chartier)
Anise? (present)
Hints of earth and leather? (Sitting at the back of the class, clearly)
The black currant and black plum were suddenly joined by blueberry which decided to join the class!
And then sadly…
the last sip. ☹
Sad yes, BUT yet another success! Hooray!
Ok, now I am super intrigued. I need a little more details sista!
A wine benefits from several steps during the decanting process. Firstly, by pouring into a different container, air is introduced into the wine. Next, by allowing the wine to sit with sufficient surface area exposed, the wine is allowed to develop in time. By continuing to taste during decanting, you can follow the progress of the wine and customize it to your preferences. If you reach a point where you think you are close to “peak wine,” for your particular preference, you can pour the wine back into the bottle to reduce the impact of further air contact. (Keep in mind that pouring the wine back into the bottle and then eventually into your glass also adds air into the wine.) Otherwise, continue decanting to allow the wine to continue to aerate during the meal, pouring directly from the decanter into your glass.
I don’t have a decanter. Am I out of luck?
Do not fret! Use a water pitcher or a very clean flower vase. Or better yet, ask Santa for one - I hear he is still checking his list. Did you know that his second favorite beverage, after decanted milk paired with cookies, is wine? Don’t forget to ask for a nice bottle of wine while you are at it, Santa has a killer cellar too!
I have compiled all my relevant wine recommendations in one place including today’s wines. I will do my best to keep this up to date. That version also has links on where to find the wines in Alberta.
Château Hourtin-Ducasse Haut-Médoc 2011 from Bordeaux, France
Style: Medium Body Red Wine
Varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon 74%, Merlot 17%, Cabernet Franc 8%, Petit Verdot 1%
This subtlety complex classic old-world style wine provides moderate intensity very ripe, (bordering on stewed), black currant and plum flavors. After decanting 45 minutes, complexity of blueberry, vanilla, cinnamon, anise and cloves notes emerges along with hints of earth and leather. The tannins are ultra fine and highly integrated and the finish is enjoyably long.
Best pairings: Shepherd’s pie, Tourtière (meat pie), Flank steak with herbal rub, Roasted duck, Mushrooms sautéed in herbs (tarragon, thyme, ) Mountain cheeses (Compté, Jura, Savoie)
Serving Temperature: 18 degrees Celsius
Price: ~$48 (incl. Shades of Grape 15% discount & 5% gst)
Serving Tips: Decant minimum of 30 minutes or to taste
Pietradolce Etna Rosso 2021 from Mount Etna, Sicily, Italy
Style: Medium Body Red Wine
Variety: Nerello Mascalese
This elegantly restrained wine has strawberry and precise multi-layered cherry flavors (red cherry, very ripe black cherry with a hints of sour cherries) and subtle savory, woodsy notes in the background. This one stays in your memory until several days later.
Best pairings: French onion soup, Italian sausage pasta dishes, Meatier fish (tuna or swordfish), poultry, or pork with tomatoes and capers, Italian cheeses (parmesan, pecorino, provolone).
Serving Temperature: 18 degrees Celsius
Price: ~$29 (incl. Shades of Grape 15% discount & 5% gst)
Serving Tips: Decant minimum of 1 hour or to taste
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