How to Pour Wine into a Decanter

Decanting wine is an easy way to bring a touch of elegance to your dinner table. Wine decanters aerate the wine more quickly than serving it straight from the bottle as well as help the wine to breathe properly before serving. Decanters and carafes come in all shapes and sizes and are beautiful vessels for showing off the color and aroma of wine.

Using a Wine Decanter:

1. Start clean and dry. Before you pour the wine, make sure your decanter is completely clean and dry. Water or dust in a wine decanter can dilute or otherwise negatively affect the flavor of your wine.

2. Check for sediment. Older wines often have a great deal of sediment that at the bottom of the bottle (or if the wine was stored on its side, the sediment will line the side of the bottle). If there is a lot of sediment, let the bottle stand upright for a day or so to allow the sediment to settle on the bottom.

3. Open the wine. If the cork is crumbly, push the cork into the bottle rather than trying to pull it out of the bottle. Remove any foil and clean the neck and lip of the bottle with a damp cloth or paper towel.

4. Pour slowly. Pour the wine into the decanter in a slow, steady stream. If sediment is a concern, hold the bottle over a light source so that you can see when sediment begins to enter the neck of the bottle. If there are any pieces of cork in the wine, place a piece of cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer over the decanter opening and pour the wine through the strainer to remove the cork.

5. Allow the wine to rest. Let the wine rest in the decanter for approximately half an hour before serving. Move the decanter to the refrigerator briefly if the wine becomes too warm. Remember, most red wines are supposed to be served at cool room temperature, which is about 10 degrees F cooler than what most people are accustomed to. Pour directly from the decanter into glasses.