115 Responses

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1. January 12, 2007

   OH! NO! PHILE!

   BIRTH OF A VAYNIAC!!!!!! Great Stuff Gary-on the money and about enjoying the wine. I’m glad to know that there are others who are as passionate about wine and get their sensory imaginations kicked into gear when drinking wine. I’ve worked in high end restaraunts in Manhattan off and on for over 15 years-have tasted/described/intoduced/helped choose a loooot of wine with a lot of customers and know the passion and joy you bring to it is what it is all about. Thank You. And it’s a vindication for me for my years of funky analogies, metaphors and descriptions about wines ( I talked one couple into doing a tasting of the Domaine Drouhin Oregon with the Domaine Drouhin Burgundy and they laughed at my description of on being like carpet bombing and the other like a laser guided I.C.B.M., but onced they tried then they totally understood ). And I’ve been talking people in to decanting everything for years- alot of pessimists and then a lot of converts. And its fun when the converts come back and can tell me on their second wine BTG that they know it must be from a new bottle and the first must have been opened late last night.
   Whip some age on those Babies with some Air!!!! Get those Aunt Esthers Dancin’!!!! I’m Comin’ Elizbeth!!! ONP

2. January 3, 2007

   Charles Colomer

   I just finnished watching about 15 episodes and i have learned so much about
   wine that i did not know before. thanx for all you have done for me…
   i love you man!!….i am so drunk right now………..

3. December 29, 2006

   Tom Aikens

   Gary….

   Drifted back through earlier episodes. The Amon Ra caught my eye (might be a pun there somewhere given the label). Anyway, I love Glaetzer’s wines (Mitolo, Godolphin, etc.) and it seems you liked this one as well.

   I agree decanting makes a big difference and i try to decant most of my good, young(er) wines. My question is, are there wines that should NOT be decanted?

4. December 13, 2006

   Weinwahrheit » Blog Archive Dekantieren ja oder nein? »

   [...] Die Frage ob man einen Wein vor der Verkostung dekantieren sollte, beantwortet Gary Vaynerchuck in der 13. Episode von tv.winelibrary.com sehr anschaulich und unterhaltsam anhand eines 2004 Amon Ra Shiraz, den man z.B. hier für 90 Euro beziehen kann. Wer ein wenig mehr über die abenteuerliche Geschichte des australischen Kartoffelbauers Frank Mitolo, der zusammen mit Ben Glaetzer nun offensichtlich einen der besten australischen Weine herstellt, findet hier im Getränkewelt-Weiser eine kurze Beschreibung. Nun haben noch keine 90 Euro Weine meinen Gaumen berührt, aber die Vermutung liegt nahe, dass auch preiswertere Weine vom Dekantieren profitieren. [...]

5. December 7, 2006

   Brandon M

   Actually Scott…keeping it that cold is not gonna do much for the flavors anyway. The 55-60 serving temperature is going to mask some of the flavors in the wine no matter how long you decant. If this is what you truly like, then decant for an hour and throw the whole thing back in the fridge for a while. You could also do the “Gary, Wine Back in the Bottle Trick”. Which is decant for two hours and pour back into the bottle. Then put the bottle in a bottle chiller and BANG, you got your decanted 55 degree bottle!

6. December 1, 2006

   scott

   I’m a newbie and I’m still confused. I have seen the effects of decanting and their benefits, but I really enjoy my wine at the prime temperatures of 55-60 ish degrees. There have been a number of posts asking what to do but no answers.

   Can anyone tell me how best to decant, yet keep the wine at prime temperature? Do I decant, then put it back in the bottle and back in the cellar? Do I just decant in my basement where its colder? I can’t imagine that’s very good for the flavors…

   Help!

7. November 27, 2006

   MikeB

   Excellent episode. I know I’m catching it late, but I decant almost every red wine I drink. Years ago I decanted a Bordeaux from a case that I bought, expecting a quiet evening dinner at home and when some friends dropped by, we shared the wine and I soon ran down to grab a second bottle. I happen the serendiptous misfortune to drink a glass form the newly opened bottle immediately following one from the decanted one. Proof positive for me.

   As far as BYO restaurants go, I learned a trick from the sample master at Heitz Vineyard a few years back. After dropping some big bills on the wines he pulled out a very nice bottle of an older Martha’s Vineyard Cab. I asked, “Shouldn’t a big wine like this breathe for a few hours (days?) before drinking?” He replied, “I had it in the decanter all morning, then poured it back in the bottle.” With the right funnel it’s an easy task to pour the wine back in the bottle and slide the cork back in. (If there’s a lot of sediment, I rinse the bottle and drain it while the wine is breathing.) Try it; you’ll be doing it, too.

8. November 24, 2006

   Mezzo Litro

   Mr. “Bang for your Buck” Vay-ner-chuck,

   Where should I keep my decanted wine while waiting for dinner? On the counter in the kitchen (70 degrees F) or on the counter in my cellar (at 55 degrees F)?

   Thanx.

9. November 20, 2006

   Nathan

   Gary,

   My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed your video on decanting. You have a great passion for wine, and it truly comes out in your work! On the topic of decanting, I have decanted many wines that seem to collapse after being open too long (3-4 hours), but other wines are just getting going at that point in time. How do we determine which wines need to be decanted longer and which ones need to be consumed within a few hours?

   Nathan

10. November 13, 2006

    bill ballard

    The ultimate horror story on decanting:
    In the afternoon of February 12, 1968 [my 40th birthday] I decanted a much cherished 40 year old bottle of Ch. Lafitte that my son had come down from college in New Hampshire to share. That bottle had been privately cellared for 39 years by the man who was the Grand Chevalier du Tastevin. It was a disaster.
    So much for decanting old wines.

11. October 14, 2006

    Rick

    On my reading list:

    Written by a leading expert on the subject, the Second Edition of Hunting Serial Tasters describes the empirical process used to analyze serial tasters’ sample scene actions, making it possible to form logical decisions about how to detect and apprehend serial tasters.

    In this new edition, the author provides students with a model of the sample scene actions of American serial tasters based on information available to an expert inquiry. Hunting Serial Tasters presents an overview of related scientific knowledge, introduces new methods to classify the serial tasters, and details the processes and difficulties of profiling the serial tasters.

    By presenting a classification model of serial tasters and their sample scene behaviors based on empirical and repeatable studies, this book makes significant advances in the areas of expert investigations, the cause or origin of disease, and possible treatments.

12. October 14, 2006

    good old ludwig van

    I was reminded of the importance of decanting last weekend. I opened a bottle of 1999 Beringer Vineyards Merlot Private Reserve Bancroft Ranch, didn’t decant, and started drinking it after only 20 minutes. It didn’t show nearly as well as the previous time I’d had it, and I ended up feeling like I’d wasted what I know could have been a good bottle of wine.

    You are right to admonish us that if we want to get serious about wine, we need to invest the time in decanting so it will show its best.

13. October 2, 2006

    cgf

    Gary,
    this is definitely one of my favorite episodes. It really paid off about a month ago when i opened up the 2003 quimera and took a sip and thought it sucked. it tasted like spicy oak and had really bitter dry tannins. I decanted it for two hours and then i was singing your praises for recommending this wine and decanting. Thanks for all you do, and im looking forward to 100!

14. October 1, 2006

    Mike F.

    I bought the vacu-vin because I was getting tired of dumping my inexpensive reds down the drain the next evening after opening. They didn’t all fall apart within 24 hours, but a significant portion would oxidize after several hours exposure, losing a lot of their flavors. These were the reds that were less than 10 dollars mind you. Then one day I noticed something. After pouring a glass from a bottle of Rhone wine that I had opened the previous evening and re-corked, I expected the wine to be a little worse for the wear. I was stunned. The light fruit and closed tannic wine from the previous evening had evolved into a multi faceted fruit laded beauty with delicious fruit, earth elements, and other flavors that weren’t previously evident. So I discovered that oxygen isn’t always the enemy. I later found that if certain wines (usually higher priced to get the necessary quality) had the structure to benefit from exposure to oxygen for more than a few hours, then they would develop into much more enjoyable wines than they were upon first opening. All wines seem to benefit from some decanting, say an hour or so. Other wines would benefit from further exposure say 3-5 hours. And there are a few in my experience that don’t reach there full potential without at least 12+ hours decanting. I still vacu-vin the cheaper reds overnight, but I try to decant every wine I open so I can enjoy the full potential.

15. September 30, 2006

    Tony

    Gary, one of my most favorite episodes. And I took this episode totally to heart. I went out and bought a decanter the next day and I now decant every single wine I drink. And even with cheap wines (but not all REaLLY cheap wines) it makes a huge, huge difference. You are absolutely 100% on target about decanting, which is why I wonder why you don’t do it on WLTV.

16. September 19, 2006

    Brandon M

    This is by far my favorite episode…it is truly the first WLTV episode I ever watched, and the one that got me hooked.

    B

17. July 4, 2006

    JohnX

    Gary, you have truly opened my eyes. Since watching this episode I have decanted every wine I purchase, whether it be a $100 fine or a $4 cleanskin… all improved.
    I do tend to stick to Australian wine though, especially barossa or Mclaren Vale, maybe this explains my experiences.

18. May 28, 2006

    MonkeyK

    Wow, I really liked this show. It is the first Wine Library TV that I have seen and came across it when googling for info on how long to decant wine.

    Anyway that is my question, Is there a way to figure out how long to decant wine for? The wine I was getting ready was a 2002 Sebastiani Sonoma County Cabernet. I really like the wine, but find that it gets better for every day that it is opened (wife and I drink a glass each with dinner, so it only stays opened for three days).

    Is there a rule of thumb for how much effect to expect from decanting (1 hour = 1 day?).

    On the day in question, I decanted for 3 hours and the sweetness in the wine really came out, but then I made the mistake of serving it a bit too warm and it wound up tasting a bit thin.

19. May 27, 2006

    daniel

    I finally opened a bottle of 1998 Grange 3 nights ago. It was a long anticipated treat. I found the wonderful wine peaked in 90-120 minutes of decanting. I left nearly a full glass to the 4 hour mark and was very dissappointed. It had over-oxidized and gotten shallow. I was shocked that a wine like ‘98 Grange did not improve with time. Who would’ve guessed?

20. April 9, 2006

    Steve

    Got a question. How are you guys decanting for 3-4 hrs and still keeping your reds at a recomended drinking temp of ~65f? I cellar my wine at 55f and find that left to decanter for 3-4 hrs leaves my reds at a room temp of ~ 75f when it comes to drinking time (I live in Fl). I have tried putting my decanted wine in my cellar instead of leaving it in the kitchen but this seems to result in moisture forming in the decanter. Any ideas?

21. March 30, 2006

    David

    Gary,

    Great job with the Wine Library TV. I think I’m going to try using a decanter when I share my wines with my family this Easter. Possibly the Arrowood or Remirez de Ganuza. I think this would be a great opportunity to taste the difference between a freshly opened bottle and one that was in a decanter for three to four hours. Again Gary, great job and keep on smelling, sipping and spitting. Hope to meet you in the store of these days to personally thank you for doing a great job.

22. March 28, 2006

    Kirk

    Great Episode, I am a huge fan of decanting for the young for air, and old for sediment.

23. March 25, 2006

    mark

    Thanks for the reply GeneV. I am actually a newbie, so I honestly don’t have enough experience to tell a corked wine from another. However, I have come across a couple of wines that made me initially wonder if they were spoiled, only to find out that they actually tasted better as time went on.

    As I write this, we’ve just completed our experiment on two bottles of 2up shiraz (a blind tasting at that), between the 3 of us here. One bottle was decanted for a good 3 hrs or so. To sniff and taste them sequentially might not be the best way to do this. However, doing this side by side, sniffing back and forth and tasting them, produces more obvious results. The decanted wine gave off a much more layered, complex scent than the more alcoholic, “thinner” smelling glass. But then again, I cannot ignore the bias in my head that “I must convince myself that the decanted wine should have X and X characteristics”. GeneV, any other suggestions for us? Thanks!

24. March 24, 2006

    GeneV

    Gary,

    I am a big fan of decanting, and I really enjoy your blog, but, again, one size does not fit all. Try this: Decant a 2000 Dame de Montrose for an hour or so and compare it to the same wine without decanting. If you don’t have one in the store, I’ll send you a bottle. Numerous folks on another forum have had exactly the same experience with this wine–the wine is much worse after decanting, but (oddly) better again the second day.

25. March 24, 2006

    GeneV

    Mark,

    When a waiter asks you to taste the wine before the others, he is usually not asking you whether you like it, but whether it is spoiled (corked, brett, etc.) You can tell corked wine right away.

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