Decanter question

imho...
the important decanting issues:
1. material shouldn't change the flavor of the wine..glass is perfect.
2. removing sediment; the bottle the wine in removes sediment perfectly fine. You might want to 'candle' it (place a point light source below the shoulder of the bottle while pouring to illuminate the last ounce or two), but you can candle directly into wine glasses.
3. changing the flavor/texture/balance of a wine by giving it air contact for some period of time; this is also accomplished by pouring directly into a decent wine glass.
4. Beauty; A decanter of wine, regardless of color, can be a stunning sight.

Conclusion; decant if you want. or don't.

P.S. I did a tasting last night in honor of halloween entitled 'trick or treat'. I served 6 wines, but there were really only three. 20 guests attended and none of them realized they were tasting the same wine back to back. I used martinelli martinelli road 2004 Chardonnay first, serving it cold. The second wine was also Martinelli Martinelli Road 2004 Chardonnay, at room temperature, from a decanter, with 8 drops of red food coloring and 1 drop of blue food coloring. Noone realized. Then I served a chilled Diachon Moulin a Vent followed by the same warm and decanted. Tasted like two totally different wines. Then I served 2004 Torbreck Struie decanted for 4 hours, followed by the same just opened. Once again, noone realized they were drinking the same wine.
It was a free tasting btw...
Some guests hated one and loved the other.
point is, messing with temperature, decanting, and color will change a wine completely.
If you decant, you will miss one aspect of a wine. I prefer to taste it throughout the evolution.

personally, im happiest with the one thats easiest to clean! there is no point really to the different shapes besides taste... really, a glass pitcher you'd use to make punch/juice in has the same effect, it just doesn't look as elegant

i dont know, but id assume the stopper is for when the wine reaches the desired taste in the decanter, to minimize the effect going forward

I'm assuming the big ones with large necks are for Cab's just like Cab glasses are big with lots of exposure to air and room for swirling. Is that correct?

Any drawbacks to crystal? Is lead a concern?

well... kind of, for the most part, ageworthy reds are really only what you're going to decant. certain whites benefit from decanting as well, but again, my experience is i probably decant 1 white for every 30 reds... ideally you'd want alot of surface area to expose the wine more, but again, the different shapes really are about style more then function...

the only drawbacks for crystal decanters are the same for crystal glasses in my opinion... durability, cleaning, lead, etc...

Interesting....I have a crystal decanter now that has a stopper. It was a gift. I've had it a long time. But, I don't particularly like the look of the crystal or the idea of lead and to me, that small neck dosen't do much more than leaving the wine in an open bottle or pouring into a glass. The stopper usually dosen't come in handy. I'm thinking something smooth glass with more exposure to air would work better for me. But, I'm a little overwhelmed by all the different shapes and trying to figure out which is best. I guess I'll just pick something pretty.

i have a crystal one as well, similar to what you described... it pretty much just acts as a decoration around the house. i do have a crystal duck style decanter i use for special occasions, maybe once a year, but other then that it's a basic shaped, easy to clean, glass decanter (actually 2 of the same, just in case) i picked up at Pottery Barn during a sale...

quote:

I'm thinking something smooth glass with more exposure to air would work better for me.

I am under the impression that once you open the wine and pour it into something it has come into contact with oxygen and the process has begun. I really don't think a small or wide neck matters at that point. I don't think of a decanter like I think of a glass.

quote:

Originally posted by spo:

quote:

I'm thinking something smooth glass with more exposure to air would work better for me.

I am under the impression that once you open the wine and pour it into something it has come into contact with oxygen and the process has begun. I really don't think a small or wide neck matters at that point. I don't think of a decanter like I think of a glass.

So basically the pouring is what starts the process and aerates the wine and after that the process just goes on...no matter what you pour it into? I still tend to think more surface area = more air after that, but maybe I am wrong. I looked around and I kinda like the reidel O decanter. It has a nice look. Now if I find it on sale, I'm good to go.