Decanting wine is a ubiquitous concept that often surfaces in discussions about wine amongst connoisseurs and enthusiasts. Despite its prevalence in these circles, the majority of wine drinkers do not regularly decant their wines. The reasons for this vary; some may find it unnecessary or time-consuming, while others simply lack knowledge about the process and its benefits. This article aims to demystify the art of decanting and provide clear guidelines on when and how to properly decant different types of wines.

Decanting is essentially the act of pouring wine from its bottle into a separate vessel called a decanter. This process serves two main purposes: separating sediment from older bottles of wine and aerating younger wines to enhance their flavors by exposing them to oxygen.

**Decanting Red Wine**

Red wines are typically more robust than whites or champagnes, with tannins that can benefit significantly from exposure to air. Decanting reds allows these tannins to soften and mellow out, resulting in a smoother taste profile.

The rules for decanting reds depend largely on age:

1. **Young Reds**: These can be quite harsh due to high levels of tannin. Decant young reds (less than 8 years old) at least one hour before serving.

2. **Mature Reds**: Older vintages often have delicate flavors that might dissipate if exposed too long. It&#39;s best practice only to give matured reds (over 8 years old) around 30 minutes in the decanter before drinking.

However, remember that every bottle is unique - there are no hard-and-fast rules here!

**Decanting White Wine**

While less common than with reds, certain white wines also benefit from being decanted - especially those with complex flavor profiles like Chardonnay or Viognier which need some breathing room for optimal expression.

As white wine tends not contain as much tannin as red wine does, they usually don&#39;t require extended periods in a decanter:

1. **Young Whites**: Decant for about 30 minutes before serving.

2. **Mature Whites**: These can be served almost immediately after decanting.

**Decanting Champagne**

The idea of decanting champagne might seem counterintuitive, as it&#39;s typically associated with preserving the bubbles. However, high-quality vintage champagnes can benefit from a brief period in a decanter to open up their complex flavors:

1. **Non-Vintage Champagnes**: Serve these directly from the bottle to maintain effervescence.

2. **Vintage Champagnes**: Decant for no more than 10-15 minutes before serving.

As with all wines, individual taste preferences should guide your decision on whether or not to decant - if you prefer your wine fresher and fruitier, consider shortening the recommended times above; conversely, if you enjoy mellower flavors and softer tannins, feel free to extend them.

While most people don&#39;t usually decant wines due to various reasons ranging from lack of knowledge or perceived complexity of the process; understanding when and how to properly do so can significantly enhance one&rsquo;s wine drinking experience by unlocking full flavor potential of different types of wines &ndash; reds, whites or even champagnes! So next time you uncork that special bottle remember: To Decant or Not To Decant? That is indeed an important question!

Decanting wine is a ubiquitous concept that often surfaces in discussions about wine amongst connoisseurs and enthusiasts. Despite its prevalence in these circles, the majority of wine drinkers do not regularly decant their wines. The reasons for this vary; some may find it unnecessary or time-consuming, while others simply lack knowledge about the process and its benefits. This article aims to demystify the art of decanting and provide clear guidelines on when and how to properly decant different types of wines.

The Art and Science of Decanting Red/White Wine and Champagne: Rules and Recommendations

Wines from grapes grown in higher altitude areas with cooler climate has become quite the trend recently. This specific growing environment gives intense flavor but elegance and freshness to the final wines. To highlight and champion these conditions more and more winemakers are starting to use alto as a marketing and labelling term to show their grapes were grown in high altitude vineyards.

Decoding the wine label: Alto

Brut is a word often seen on labels for different kinds of sparkling wine. As you may have discovered when drinking these wines, it indicates that the wine is dry, meaning there is no perceived sweetness in the wine. But how about Extra Brut or Dry, what do they mean and are they the same as Brut?

Decoding the wine label: Brut

Semi-sweet Riesling, a type of wine falling out of style. It’s a shame, since these wines are perfect to pair with flavorful cuisines like Asian or Mexican, or simply drink as they come under the summer sun. The higher level of sugar left in the wine also means that the alcoholic fermentation was stopped before finishing, providing a wine with lower alcohol level and therefor easier grabbing a second glass of.

Decoding the wine label: Spätlese

Have you ever heard the word Xinomavro? Most have not. It is however a word on many sommeliers’ lips today, as it happens to be considered the grape variety with the highest quality in Greece, and one that is trending at the moment. The fact that Greece have been making wine for a long time comes as no surprise, but they have never exported an amount to make sure wine lovers around the globe tried it. With the growing wine tourism many have discovered these wines and are serving them in wine bars and restaurants in many countries today.

Decoding the wine label: Xinomavro

Chianti Classico, Valpolicella Classico, Soave Classico… Why do all these Italian wine regions have the Classico addendum and what does it mean? What is the difference for wines labeled as Classico?

Classico is a wine term in Italy seen on a few wine labels and it indicates that the wine’s from the historic center of the region, the heart. Using Chianti and Chianti Classico and their Sangiovese-based red wines as an example, Chianti is a rather large wine district within the Tuscany region. Chianti Classico is located withing Chianti as the central part and the one that originally existed. Back then this smaller region was actually called Chianti, but as the region grew the quality of the wine plummeted and the well-known characteristics of these red wines were watered down. The reputation took a hit and sales diminished. Eventually this led to the creation of Chianti Classico, which would be drawn from the original Chianti borders to recover the typicity of these wines. Today the quality of both Chianti and Chianti Classico have risen a lot due to modern techniques and knowledge about pruning, planting and temperature control in the winery.

Decoding the wine label: Classico

In the rarefied world of fine wine, where bottles can command prices equivalent to luxury cars, authenticity is everything. Laurent Ponsot's gripping memoir "FBI: Fake Bottle Investigation" reads more like a high-stakes thriller than a traditional wine book, chronicling his relentless pursuit of one of the wine world's most infamous counterfeiters, Rudy Kurniawan.

From Burgundy's Vineyards to the FBI's Most Wanted: A Winemaker's Quest for Justice

Chablis – one of the more popular styles of wine today and a region known by many. Most are familiar with the word Chablis and the light, fresh white wine with a touch of minerality it brings. Even though it’s a renowned wine, few knows what it really is.

Decoding the wine label: Chablis

Many grape varieties around the world of wine have names local to the region or country they’re grown in, even though they’re exactly the same. The most famous example would be Syrah in France where the same grape is named Shiraz in Australia. Another variety with two names is Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris.

Decoding the wine label: Pinot Grigio

Have you ever seen the term sur lie on a wine label? It’s not a grape and not a wine region, but a winemaking method used to give certain styles of white wine a rounder texture and a more complex flavor profile.

Decoding the wine label: Sur lie

Fellow

Grace Hood, wine educator and certified sommelier, and Robert Tas explore the wine list at Fellow, now known as Wolfsglen,

Wine Review of Fellow, Los Angeles

Grace Hood

Fellow

RT: Hello and welcome to CorkRules!&nbsp;

A podcast where, in each episode,&nbsp;we will review a wine list from your favorite restaurants. I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Grace Hood, wine educator and certified sommelier. Hello Grace,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s great to have you!

GH: Greetings Robert!

RT: Before we jump in, let&rsquo;s talk about CorkRules.

We created CorkRules to demystify wine lists because we know from experience, that sometimes when we get that list handed to us, well&hellip; it can be intimidating, and even a little daunting.

Our aim is to help prepare you to navigate that list, find those hidden gems, or value wines or that special bottle that will take your dining experience over the top.

RT:&nbsp;So, sit back and listen as we review your favorite wine list. All right Grace &ndash; today we&rsquo;re reviewing the hot new spot, Fellow.

GH: I&rsquo;m very excited to review this wine list b/c it was created by a fellow sommelier friend of mine, Scott Lester! Hey, Scotty proud of you, my dude!

RT:&nbsp;Incredible! Is this the first time we&rsquo;re reviewing a list made by a colleague of yours

GH: Indeed, it is! Scotty has since moved back to his one true love, the Rocky Mountains. And the wine director for the Aspen Snowmass resort. But he definitely left a mark on Fellow.

RT: I&rsquo;m excited to get into it! &nbsp;

GH: Oh, you have no idea, Robert. I dined here twice during the pandemic when Scott was running the wine program. And both experiences were absolutely divine. The service, the presentation, the cuisine. Seriously amazing.

RT: I love it. We will have to go next time I&rsquo;m in LA Where do you want to start us on this wine list made by your friend?

GH: Where do we always start Robert? At sparkling of course! I&rsquo;m thinking this 2015 Chartogne-taillet Champagne would be a great way to kick of your experience at Fellow.

RT: Vintage champagne &ndash; I don&rsquo;t hate it! Now Scott must have curated an amazing selection of white wine for sure.

GH: Oh did he ever! Looking first at some light cali whites, I&rsquo;m really interested in this Pinot gris pinot blanc blend from one of my personal favorites, Au Bom Climate, out of Santa Barabara. I love their pinots and chardonnays so would be really curious to try this white pinot blend.

RT: Oh, wow that is a really interesting combo. I wouldn&rsquo;t expect that from the central coast.

GH: I know right? That&rsquo;s why I want to give it a whirl! &nbsp;

RT: Now we can&rsquo;t talk California without talking chardonnays. &nbsp;

GH: Oh well of course not. Scott hit the nail on the head with having some classic producers as well as some smaller boutique vineyards represented on the list. One Cali chard that has a cult following in Mayacamas, and you get your pick of a newer vintage bottle with 2019, or an aged mayacamas, throwing it back to 2002! Ooh wee!

RT: They do love their American oak out in Cali.

GH: Oh don&rsquo;t they ever! It&rsquo;s embedded into our economy!

RT: Makes sense! Now I believe Scott killed it in the red section Grace

GH: Oh he absolutely did! He and I both love pinot so I was blown away by the selection. Right out the gate if you&rsquo;re thinking Oregon &ndash; gotta go with the 2017 Arterberry Maresh. If we&rsquo;re thinking Sonoma &ndash; 2017 Arista from Russian river. And to round it out with central coast &ndash; the 2017 Hitching Post from Santa Rita Hills.

RT: Greatest hits of the west coast. I love it! Now we can&rsquo;t talk California without talking cabernet. What did Scott curate for the cab drinkers?

GH: Well, if you wanted to have a whole mayacamas experience, there&#39;s a 2005 from Mt. Veeder which would be drinking amazingly right now.

RT: Oh, that would be such a fun experience. Two older Mayacamas together. Super unique! Now, I know you&rsquo;ve talked that sommeliers want to have something for everyone on their lists. What did Scott pick for some value wines?

GH: For whites, he has a Verdicchio on the menu for $30 which is a crazy price for LA! And then your value red &ndash; he&rsquo;s got a 2019 Bourgogne from Domaine de Vieux College 

RT: Fantastic. Now, how are you going to pick the special occasion bottles on a list curated by a friend?

GH: For real there are so many special bottles on the list. But at the end of the day, Scott and I are both Francophiles. This 2018 Meursault from Chavvy Chouet would be white Burgundy white gold, and then for red, this 2005 St Estepe from Ch&acirc;teau Lafon Rochet would be just the ticket

RT: Fantastic! Grace, thank you so much for helping us navigate the list at Fellow. To our audience, thank you all for Joining us here on CorkRules.&nbsp; If you would like us to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to: <a href="mailto:Info@CorkRules.com">Info@CorkRules.com</a> or visit our web website where we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists. Follow us on social media @CorkRules and @wineswithgrace

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

Thank you.

End

&nbsp;

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BRAT

Bocca di Lupe

Gap Weekend: A Film Shoot in Wine Country

Alba Restaurant

Alba

10 Greek Street

L'Auberge Chez Francois

Andrew Edmunds

Salt Seafood and Oyster Bar

Matteos Ristorante Italiano

Matteo's

Sycamore Lane is a popular wine brand that offers a range of varietals, including Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and others. The wines are known for their consistent quality and affordability.

Charming, snug spot with Italian comfort food & creative cocktails, plus a notable beer & wine list.

GlenArbor

homepage

CorkRules application allows you to discover wines at your favorite restaurants, learn with friends and be confident with price transparency. Order wine with confidence at restaurants and retailers. Get personalized recommendations. #DrinkWhatYouLove

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