Decanting

Decanting for sediment is a mechanical necessity in old red wine and Vintage Port. Stand the bottle upright for a day, pour slowly, and stop when the sediment reaches the neck.

Decanting for aeration is a judgement. Air can soften young tannic wine and disperse reductive smells, but the effects are more modest and less predictable than commonly claimed.

Opening a bottle an hour early achieves almost nothing — the wine surface exposed at the neck is about the size of a coin. If you want aeration, pour it into something wide.

Old wine is the exception in the opposite direction: it can fade within half an hour, so decant it off its sediment immediately before serving rather than hours ahead.

Sparkling wine should not be decanted, for reasons that are fairly obvious once stated.