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THE DECANTER
You may have a decanter tucked away in a cupboard – maybe even in its original box – a wedding or birthday gift, most likely, gratefully received at the time. This is the vessel, you might have thought as you unwrapped it, that will herald my shift into adulthood. Owning one of these will make me a sophisticated wine connoisseur, impressing all of those who dine at my table. Or you may have looked at it and thought, “What is the point of that? Pouring wine from a bottle does the job just as well and involves no washing up.”
Now is the time to seek out that decanter: Christmas lunch is its moment to shine. Suddenly it makes sense. This is not a humdrum, everyday household item, like a tumbler or a dinner plate, that appears at midweek meals. It is an item with gravitas that sits on the table or sideboard filled with more-expensive-than-usual wine, bestowing a sense of occasion on proceedings. Serve your wine in one of these and you make a statement. “I know about wine,” you silently declare, “and I understand that it needs to be kept just so.”
But what, actually, is the point of a decanter other than showiness? It heralds from Ancient Roman times where wine was decanted from amphora into glass vessels, but its heyday was Renaissance Italy. It was essential then to carefully pour wine from a bottle into another vessel to leave the sediment behind. The Venetians, with their mastery of glass blowing and love of a decent red, pioneered the style of a decanter with a long slender neck and heavy base, that is still largely employed today.
Modern wine-making means that few wines, only the very aged, have sediment, so is there still a need for a decanter? Many wine experts say yes, believing it is vital to aerate wine, and pouring it into a decanter does exactly that. Decantation is the equivalent of swirling wine around in a glass to introduce air which triggers the release of aromas and flavour. It is also supposed to smooth wines that contain a lot of tannins, such as Barolo, Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon or Port.
Some think that opening a bottle a couple of hours before a meal and allowing it to ‘breathe’ does the same job and there is no logical reason to employ a decanter. But they don’t appreciate the presence it brings to the table, especially when it sits alongside a turkey and a bowl of sprouts.
“It brings a presence to the table, especially alongside a turkey and bowl of sprouts”