Everyone knows that decanting a wine is a unique way to make it better. It removes some of the unpleasant odors from a freshly opened wine so that the closed aromas are better distributed, the tannins become softer, and the aromas slowly change as the wine comes into contact with the air. Do you know how to decant a wine?
The value of decanting up
A wine in a bottle is like a sleeping beauty, beautiful but lacking in aura and charm. The main purposes of decanting up a wine are.
(1) Moderate oxidation
It can soften the rough tannins. After exposure to air, tannins undergo a series of oxidation reactions and become smooth and delicate.
(2) Aromatic recovery
In some wines, the aromas are closed when the wine is young, but after contact with air, the aromas are slowly lifted and gradually released.
(3) Removal of sediment
Decanting the wine and changing the bottle can remove the sediment accumulated over the years and avoid tartaric acid residue in the wine, which affects the taste.
(4) Removal of odors
Some wines have excessive sulfur dioxide added during the winemaking process, which can easily create a reductive sulfur smell and rotten egg smell. This unpleasant taste will disappear quickly during the decanting process.
decanting method
(1) Decanting up the bottle
Simply uncork the bottle and let it stand upright, allowing a small part of the bottle mouth to come into contact with the air. This method is known as “decanting the bottle”. It is slower to soften the tannins and release the aromas, but it allows the reductive aromas to evaporate.
The disadvantage is that it does not remove the tartaric acid deposits from the old wine. This method is usually used for: New Year’s Day wine or wine with off flavors.
(2) decant-Up Machine
It is the transfer of the wine from the bottle to the wine decanter so that the wine can be fully exposed to the air in the wine a decanter. The softening of the tannins and the release of aromas is much faster than the “shaking” method.
The shaker is the ideal way to decant a wine. It not only softens tannins, releases aromas and eliminates off-flavors perfectly and quickly, but also eliminates old wines that have settled. The sobriquet is the most common and practical method.
(3) Cupping
Pour the wine into a glass and bring it into full contact with the air to decant it. Because of the large contact area between the wine and the air, decanting up is fast.
Disadvantages: It is difficult to taste the various changes in the wine during the decanting process and to experience the feeling of the peak of wine quality. A bottle of wine needs to be decanted many times, which is too frequent. Does not remove sediment from the wine.
Which wines need to be decanted
Given all the benefits of decanting , do all wines need to be decanted? Of course not. Generally speaking, pink and white wines are less likely to be decanted and most wines that are decanted are red wines. Wines that have the following characteristics usually need to be decanted.
(1) Grape varieties with thicker tannins and newer vintages
Because they are young, these varieties have thick, coarse tannins that are not refined enough, like a hairy boy who needs to be sharpened (decanted) to become round and smooth.
(2) Barrel Aged Wines
Most wines, whether red or white, that are aged in oak barrels require decanting. The newer the barrel or the longer the ageing period, the longer the decanting time for the wine. This is because oak barrels impart tannins and aromas to the wine, and increase the tannin content and body of the wine.
(3) Aged wines
Normally, tannins, tartaric acid and polyphenols polymerize and coalesce during the aging process, resulting in precipitation.
This precipitate can cause a rough, numb feeling in the mouth, so you will need to decant and remove the precipitate. Usually, an aged wine will decant in a short time, but not for a long time, just like an old man who can’t stand it for a long time.
(4) Wines with off flavors
Off-flavors are usually degraded flavors, such as rotten eggs, sulfur, etc., which are often found in some inexpensive wines.
Since the grapes used to make these wines are not particularly well ripened and sanitary, wineries add relatively high amounts of sulfur dioxide to kill the bacteria, which can easily make the wine taste like fire.
Wine Sobriety Standards
(1) Tannin content
Generally speaking, the higher the tannin content of the grape variety, the longer the decanting time of the wine.
(2) Maceration time
The longer the maceration time during the fermentation process, the higher the tannin content of the wine and the longer the decanting time.
(3) Barrel aging time
Generally speaking, the longer a wine is aged in oak barrels, the longer it takes to decant.
(4) Proportion of new oak barrels
The higher the percentage of new oak barrels in the aging process, the longer the decanting time.
(5) Ageing Generally speaking, New Year’s wines have strong, rough tannins that take a long time to decant. As the years pass, the tannins mature in the bottle and become smoother or even thinner, so the decanting time is reduced.
