Author: Dirk Chan
The hottest wine gadget of late has been a class of accessories called ‘wine aerators’, the selling point being it will make your wines taste better. The concept is not new, it is exactly the same as a decanter, premature aging of the wine via oxygenation. The difference is in the packaging. The decanter process involves slow pouring of the wine into the vessel taking care not to mix in any sediment and using the large surface area to expose the wine to air thus (hopefully) leading to a better aromatic profile for the wine due to the ‘opening up’ process.
These ‘wine aerators’ do the same thing except in a smaller package. They aerate as you pour the wine into your glass or decanter thus fulfilling our society’s current fad for immediate gratification. There is a vessel or bowl like surface area to pour the wine into, there is the gurgling nose as it throws the wine around in this reservoir to aerate it before being letting it into your wine glass or decanter. All this happens in a matter of a few seconds (as opposed to twenty minutes in a decanter alone) and voila you have a wine that is ‘ready-to-go’ and ‘singing’.
There are many variations of the same thing available, my personal preference is the Vinturi for the ones with a larger bowl so you can pour the wine into quickly without having to stand there waiting for the reservoir to empty before any more for fear of overflow. The neatest one just out is the Winestuff Nuance Wine Finer meant – it is a superb pourer but it aerates as you pour wine into the glass, it looks innocent enough yet also aerates as it pours and has a filter to prevent sediment from going into your glass, a very compact and stylish pourer aerator combination. I would recommend these aerators for the times when you’re in a hurry and especially for young wines, they do appear to make a difference. However, caution when using these for a mature and full-ready wine, you could end up with something over-the-hill with over-oxygenation.
Having said all that, and to be honest, being the traditionalist that I am, I still go for the slower decanter method and appropriate stemware. After all, the marvel of wine enjoyment is to observe and appreciate the wine as it changes over time. Great wines give you something new and different every time you go back to it over the course of an hour or so – I love and savor and expect an ever changing landscape. To have a wine presented to me at its peak almost seems like getting to the destination but missing the journey.
Dirk,
Ever done a blind tasting of the same wine popped and poured, decanted for 2 hours, and put through an aerator?
Mike.
Comment by Mike Yan — July 23, 2009 @ 3:55 pm
Not lately Mike, would be interesting for sure to try it out. I’ve tasted from several agents who swear by these aerators. Definitely beneficial for young wines. I would never dream of using them on a 1990 Pichon Baron though.
Comment by Dirk — July 23, 2009 @ 9:32 pm