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Calico Jack

By Calico Jack

Why aerate Wine?

Aerating wine can produce a significant and rapid improvement in a wine. Back in 2015, we watched a segment by ABC News’ Good Morning America making an inexpensive bottle ($7) of red wine to taste like a more expensive bottle of wine. We, the wine enthusiasts, have since hosted many “blind tests” of making a bargain bottle of wine taste more expensive by using various aerating methods. We have recently received several reader questions (inspired by the “artificial respiration” cartoon on our site) whether wine needs to breathe, here are our answers to “Is it necessary to aerate wine”?

wine-aerator
  • Despite what the cartoon characters think, letting wine breathe is not a form of artificial respiration!
  • In 2015, ABC’s Good Morning America put a modestly priced wine through the blender for 30 seconds. Then they ran a blind test and the result showed the $7 bottle of wine after being aerated in the blender got as high a mark of approval of as an $87 bottle of wine.

What is wine aeration?

Wine aeration is the process of exposing the wine to air (oxygen) to remove or reduce certain compounds in the wine and to enhance others. It is a time-tested method of improving the bouquet and taste of many wines. Most people have heard of and perhaps used the simplest aeration technique, which is to simply open the wine a while before you drink it and let the wine “breathe” for a while before consuming it. Similarly, swirling wine in your glass is an aeration technique. There are also devices to more aggressively aerate wines.

Why aerate wines?

There are a number of good reasons to aerate wines. For example, there are certain compounds that may be in wines, such as sulfites, which have unpleasant aromas. Some of these aromatics can be reduced through the process of aeration. Also aeration can provide a better balance to a wine, allowing the more subtle flavors and aromas to emerge.

which-wine-need-to-be-aerated

Aeration can make a significant improvement to a wine, often giving the characteristics of a more expensive wine to one that otherwise would seem unremarkable.

Which wines need to be aerated?

  • Wine aeration works best for “big” complex red wines.
  • Additionally, as shown in the ABC test (and our personal experience), aeration can significantly improve more moderately priced wines.
  • In fact, older and more complex wines may benefit from more subtle forms of aeration, like decanting, whereas younger and less expensive wines may benefit most from more aggressive aeration.

How to aerate a wine?

Wine aeration may be accomplished several ways, although some are quicker and more effective than others.

  • Simply uncork the bottle to allow it to  “breathe”  for a while prior to enjoying the wine (no rescue breathing required!)
  • By decanting in a specially designed wine aerator decanter.
  • By swirling in your wine glass (especially a specially designed aerating wine glass), and
  • By using a specially designed wine aerator.

How much should I aerate?

Aeration of wine can be done “passively” such as by letting the wine breathe, decanting the wine, or simply swirling it in the glass. To speed the process, wine aerators can be battery-powered or CO2 powered (the latter can be fairly expensive to purchase and operate). It’s important to understand that introducing air into wine enhances the taste and nose in the short term, but does so by using the exact same mechanism of oxidation that causes wine to go bad over time. So if you aerate your wine, it should be for immediate consumption.

For mechanical aerators, the rule of thumb is that you should be able to see some bubbles that were introduced into your wine by the aerator when the wine goes into the glass. The bubbles will rapidly dissipate, but that shows that enough oxygen has been introduced into the wine.

What techniques and products are used to aerate a wine?

In addition to opening the wine to let it breathe in its own bottle, the market offers a variety of products to enhance the aeration process. Many of these are “funnels”, which may be powered to introduce air into the wine, through which you pour your wine into the glass and the aerator blends air in with the wine to produce the benefits of aeration. Here are the techniques and products to facilitate wine aeration:

  • Decanter – A common and easy technique is to use a decanter as an aerator. Pouring wine into a decanter, or even back-and-forth between decanters, more rapidly exposes a greater surface area of the wine to the air. The action of pouring a wine into a decanter (or between decanters) mechanically introduces air into the wine to enhance oxidation and to allow strong aromatics to dissipate.
  • Aerator or Vinturi – Vinturi wine aerators are a popular brand for wine aeration. The Vinturi brand is often used (improperly) as generic term for a wine aerator, and there are other brands (e.g., Wine Weaver). Typically aerators work either passively (wine is poured through complex funnel-like device which causes the wine to intermix with air) or actively (a mechanical device, perhaps battery powered, provides a blender-like intermixing of air with the wine).
  • Aerating wine glasses – There are also Wine glasses with built-in aerator which increase aeration by the design of the glass or by 3-D designs on the surface of the glass.
Le Chateau Wine Decanter - Hand Blown Lead-free Crystal Glass Wine Decanters and...
Riedel Cabernet Decanter
3in1 Steel Funnel with Strainer (Wine Shower + Aerator + Filter) - Improves Wine...
VINVOLI Wine Aerator - New 2023 Luxury Red Wine Aerator Decanter with Unique...
Breville BWD600SIL Sommelier Electric Decanter, Brushed Stainless Steel
Le Chateau Wine Decanter - Hand Blown Lead-free Crystal Glass Wine Decanters and...
Riedel Cabernet Decanter
3in1 Steel Funnel with Strainer (Wine Shower + Aerator + Filter) - Improves Wine...
VINVOLI Wine Aerator - New 2023 Luxury Red Wine Aerator Decanter with Unique...
Breville BWD600SIL Sommelier Electric Decanter, Brushed Stainless Steel
$50.35
$63.00
$16.95
$15.97
Price not available
View on Amazon
View on Amazon
View on Amazon
View on Amazon
View on Amazon
Le Chateau Wine Decanter - Hand Blown Lead-free Crystal Glass Wine Decanters and...
Le Chateau Wine Decanter - Hand Blown Lead-free Crystal Glass Wine Decanters and...
$50.35
View on Amazon
Riedel Cabernet Decanter
Riedel Cabernet Decanter
$63.00
View on Amazon
3in1 Steel Funnel with Strainer (Wine Shower + Aerator + Filter) - Improves Wine...
3in1 Steel Funnel with Strainer (Wine Shower + Aerator + Filter) - Improves Wine...
$16.95
View on Amazon
VINVOLI Wine Aerator - New 2023 Luxury Red Wine Aerator Decanter with Unique...
VINVOLI Wine Aerator - New 2023 Luxury Red Wine Aerator Decanter with Unique...
$15.97
View on Amazon
Breville BWD600SIL Sommelier Electric Decanter, Brushed Stainless Steel
Breville BWD600SIL Sommelier Electric Decanter, Brushed Stainless Steel
Price not available
View on Amazon

Summary

So what is the conclusion? To Aerate or Not To Aerate? There is somewhat mixed evidence as to what degree aeration improves wine, but most tests suggest aeration does improve the taste and smoothness of wines and may make moderately priced wines taste like those wines with a significantly larger price tag. It is clear that the effects of aeration differ by the characteristics of the wine being aerated. It is well worth experimenting on your own using a decanter, an aerator or an aerating wine glass with wines you typically enjoy to evaluate the benefit of wine aeration personally.

As a final thought, can wine aeration reduce hangovers? The answer is: aerating wines may, in fact, reduce hangovers by reducing or eliminating compounds that may cause headaches. For example, sulfites used to preserve wines may cause headaches in a significant portion of the population. So wine aeration and filtration may help by reducing sulfites in wines.

Filed Under: Wine aeration, Wine Tips Tagged With: Decanter

By Calico Jack

The Wines of the Rhône Valley

For us, the Rhône Valley and its wines carries strong and vivid memories of some of our most delightful wine tasting experiences there. Our first experience with Rhône River Valley vineyards was about 30 years ago when a trip to Grenoble gave us several extra days to spend in Dijon. That was a wonderful way to start our experience, as Dijon is known for having the best food in all of France. Be sure to plan a few days there; our favorite restaurants are from among the myriad of curbside bistros lining the streets. But we digress; on to the subject of wine tasting in the Rhône Valley (which is close to and easily reached from Dijon).

A French friend was our host– and a knowledgeable one at that! We stayed off the beaten path of well-known vineyards and spent our time visiting smaller but excellent vineyards. If you are used to the commercial tasting rooms of Napa Valley or similar regions, it will be a pleasant surprise to visit tiny vineyards where the winery owner (or spouse) is actually conducting the tasting. As often as not, the tasting will come not from a bottle but from wine drawn directly from the barrel.

A little knowledge of the geography and history of the region can improve your appreciation for the remarkable experience to be had there.

the-wines-of-rhone-valley
The Wines of Rhone Valley

The Rhône Valley is actually a rift valley formed several hundred million years ago between the Alps and the Massif Central. For many years that Valley was filled with water from the Mediterranean. As that water receded, the Rhône River cut into the valley floor and brought different kinds of soil and rocks down into what would become the vineyards of today. Underlying the soil, there is a layer of bedrock over which water flows which keeps the growing vines supplied with water. The water and the soils impart different and unique bouquets to wines produced here.

Wines have been produced in the Rhône River Valley since biblical times. There is evidence that in the fourth century BC, when the area was colonized by Greece, wine grapes were grown in the Marseille area and then made their way north in the Rhône River Valley. Thus, this is one of the oldest wine growing regions on earth.

Another bit of history of particular interest in this region is the presence of the Popes. In the 14th century, the Papacy moved from Rome to Avignon. The popes, apparently great lovers of the region’s wines, planted many vineyards in this area, and the area developed commercial and shipping importance. Eventually this region came to be known as Côtes du Rhône.

Because of the Papal history, one of the most memorable villages of the region is Châteauneuf du Pape. We found this a delightful village in which to wander around. We encountered one winery that was run entirely by women where we met a young teenage girl who was next in line. Characteristic of the Rhône Valley wines we tasted, these wines were wonderful on our palettes. They were full flavored and very drinkable.

Like many visitors to the region, we were enamored with Gigondas and its multitude of small, friendly wineries. We found the wines to be amazing and the experience to be uniquely personal. Here we tasted several wines directly from the barrel, including at Chateau De Saint Cosme, the oldest winery in Gigondas.

As we traveled from village to village and from vineyard to vineyard it was as if we were having a never-ending series of unforgettable experiences, each one better than the last. If you have the opportunity to visit the Rhône River Valley and its wineries, do not miss this Côtes du Rhône experience. What a pleasant way to fill your wine cooler!

Filed Under: Wine Regions Tagged With: Wines of the Rhône Valley

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