Lifestyle

"Age improves all wines except the whine of man." - Anonymous
Elaborate swirls of crystal, regalia reminiscent of secondary chemistry and studious pouring; decanting can seem a mysterious business. Thehouseofthings demystifies the art of the decanter – and lists the process, simplifying its ambiguity for you this New Year.

The art of decanting a wine is in simple terms, transferring the wine from the bottle into another vessel, either for the purposes of removing something (sediment) or adding something (oxygen) to the wine, both of which aim to give the best possible experience for the drinker, not to forget alleviating the taste. As wine ages, especially full bodied red wines, they throw off sediment. Some is in the form of large, solid, tartrate crystals; some is complex tannin and other phenolic compounds, while some is simply tiny particles of setritus.
Knowing what, and when, to decant is another matter. Light, youthful, fresh white wines a