INTRODUCING OXYGEN to WINE

  • Adding Oxygen to Wine is Something That Can Be Achieved Slowly/ Gentle or Quickly/ Violently. Oxygen Mixes With Esters and Activates Volatile Aromas and Flavors. Prolonged Exposure to Oxygen Opens Up and Soften a Wine Often Emphasizing Its Structure and Enhancing its Aromas. There’s Always a Balance Between the Positives Effects and the Inevitability of the Wine Deteriorating Due to Oxidation.
  • Oxidation Scale– Low   |   Medi-   |    Medium   |   Medi+  |   High

BREATHING= Deliberate and Controlled Exposure of Oxygen to Wine by Removing the Cork and “Letting the Bottle Breath”.

  • A Unopened Wine is In a No/ Low Oxygen Environment, and Most Wines Use Sulfur Before Bottling to Kill Bacteria and Preserve the Wine. It’s Adventitious to Give a Wine Time to De- Absorb the Sulfur. Breathing Times Can Range From 1-5 Hours Depending On the Wines Needs. Because of the Small Surface Area “Breathing” Has the Slowest Effect On the Wine.

DECANTING WINE= Deliberate and Controlled Exposure of Oxygen to Wine by Pouring a Wine Out of Its Bottle Into a Decanter/ Container/ Wine Glass.

  • DEMYSTIFYING PROCEDURES– “Decanting Wine”
    • When You Pour the Wine Into the Decanter it Get a Splash of Oxygen With the Introduction of Air. Once Inside the Decanter the Wine Has a Huge Surface to Mix With the Oxygen. When You Pour from the Decanter the Wine Get Another Blast of Oxygen. Besides Air Exposure Decanting a Wine Helps With Older Wine Which Had Dropped Some Sediment. When You Pour Into a Decanter You a Can Leave the Sediment In the Bottle.
  • Glass Decanter– Wine Glasses Are Small Decanter, So Even In You Don’t Decant Your Wine Into a DECANTER, Your Wine is Still Being Decanted On a Smaller Scale.
  • Decanter– A Vessel In Which Wine is Decanting Into. While Vary In Shape and Design a Decanter is Usually Made From Glass or Crystal and Typically Have a Narrow Neck and a Extremely Wide Bottom.
  • SHAPES & STYLES OF DECANTERS
    • Cornett                               Swan
    • Duck                                   Standard

AERATING WINE= Deliberate and Controlled Exposure of Oregon to Wine(Violently) by Pouring Wine Through a Agitation Device

  • Aerator– Spout Device Usually Put In the Opening of the Bottle or a Hand-Held Pour Through Apparatus
  • Height Aerating– By Pouring a Wine From a Height it Can Act a Aerator, and Agitate Your Wine.
  • Hand Swirling–
  • DEMYSTIFYING PROCEDURES– “Calibrating Decanting”
    • Before You Can Decant a Wine, You Must Quantify the Style and Character of a Wine In Order to Accurately Choose What Decanting Measure and Duration to Use. Think of a Bottle of Wine as “Sleeping” or “Hibernating” Do You Want to Violently Wake it Up or Gently Wake it Up.
  • Is the Wine a Young Tannic Wine That Needs to be Violently Awaken or is a +AGED/ 15yr. Pinot Noir That Would Be Best to Uncork and Breath?
  • Decanting Times Can Range From 30 Minutes to Many Hours Depending On the Age of the Wine and Varietal.
  • The Younger and More Tannic the Wine the Longer the Need For Decanting
  • Be Careful Decanting Old Wine Which May Be Delicate and Extended Exposure to Oxygen Might Accelerate Oxidation.
  • Recant a Wine– After Decanting a Wine Pouring it Back Into its Bottle.  It’s Possible to Decant Wine In a Decanter at Home, Put Wine Back In Bottle, Re-Cork it and Bring it Somewhere Else to Enjoy.
  • **Refer to “WINE STYLES/ Oxidizing Wine” For Additional Information

”The Younger the Wine The More You Want to Subject it to Oxidation and Decanting.”

  • WINES THAT SHOULD BE DECANTED
    • Vintage Port                       Old Wines-
    • Young Wines                     Acidic/ Tannic Wine-
    • Wine with Sediment
  • **Most Wines Should Be Decanted In Some Way and Length Either Gently or Violently
  • **Be Careful With Old Wine Because They Are Delicate, They Should Be Decanted Primarily Because of Sediment and Not to Open Them Up.
  • PHILOSOPHY– “Is There a Psychological Effect to Decanting Wine and Drinking it From the Decanter?”

TASTEVIN= Burgundian Word Designating a Tasting Cup.  A Small Shallow-Domed-Bottom Tasting Cup With Single Thumb Handle.

  • Used 1600’s-On to Reflect Hue, Clarity and Wine Color In Candle-Lit Wine Cellars With No Electricity, Little Light
  • Originally of Silver, Now Silver Plated
  • Bordeaux Model- 65 mm.-110 mm. In Depth and 2.5 mm.- 4.5 mm. In Diameter
  • AKA= Tasse A Vine, Goute-Vin, Essai a Vin, Epreuve, Tasse a Oreille

PRESERVING WINE AFTER OPENING IT

“From the Moment You Uncork the Bottle, Wine is an Evolving Thing, Changing if Not Minute to Minute Then Every 5 Minutes.”

HOW LONG WILL WINE FROM A BOTTLE LAST AFTER OPENING

  • Young, Full Body Wines Will Keep Integrity Longer Than Older, Thin Wines
  • Wine is “Almost” Perfect to Drink the Next Day, and Some Wine Lovers Find That Day Old Wine Has Opened and Developed Into Something More Complexed and Enjoyable.
  • ”Law of Diminishing Returns” Wine Will Decrease In Quality From Day Two Onward and Be Relatively Fine For to Up to a Week.
  • While Wine Will Lose Flavor and Taste It’s Can Be Consumed Harmlessly for Months.

LIFE SUPPORT= Termed Used For a Opened Bottle of Wine That’s Done Being Consumed But the Owner Wants to Enjoy it at a Later Time. Once a Bottle is Opened it’s On “Life Support”. After Two Days a Steady Decline In the Quality of the Wine Through the Effects of OxidationWill Be Apparent….But Try these Tips.

  • Let-It-Ride– If Yours Plans Are to Consume the Remaining Wine the Next Day Leave it On the Counter With the With the Cork Out. The Next Day, Red Wine Left at Room Temperature Will Taste as Good, if Not Better Than the Previous Day. Most Wines Will Improve With a Little Controlled Amount of Air. (Like he Amount Wine Gets From the Open Space Inside a Partially Filled Bottle.
  • Refrigerate-It– If you Are Note Sure When You Will Finish Wine From Bottle Put Remaining Wine In the Refrigerator, Wine is a Living Life-Full “Food”. Refrigeration
    Slows the Aging Process and Keeps the Wine Relatively Fresh.
  • Transfer– Put Leftover Wine to Smaller Bottle(375ml.) to Limit Oxygen Exposure, and Then Match it With Another Preserving Technique For Double Protection.
  • Vacuum– Apparatus That Sucks Air Out of Bottle, Although Modestly A Vacuum Will Keep the Freshness for a Couple of Days
  • Argon Gas– Gas Filled Container Filled With Harmless and Odorless Argon Gas. The Apparatus Shoots the Inert Gas Into Bottle to Take Place of Oxygen
  • Stopper– Due to Their Effervescence and Acidity, Sparkling Wine Has a Enhanced Preserving Power. A Champagne Stopper Will Keep Your Bubble Sparking For Several Days.
  • Vinfinity– System Which Lets You Mechanically Suck Out the Optimal Amount of Air In Opened Bottle In less Than 2 Seconds.
    • System is Highly Reliable and Easy to Install and Use. Requires minimal Bar Space, No Regular Maintenance  and Low Operating Cost.
  • Marble It!– Put as Many as You Need Marbles In Bottle to Displace Wine and Limit Oxygen

SPARKLING WINES– How Long Will the Bubbles In a Sparkling Wine Stay Persistent?
By Keeping Sparkling Wine Chilled it Slows-Down the Loss of Carbon Dioxide Out of the Solution/ Wine. Bubbles Have Been Known to Last For Up to 4 Days if the Proper Precautions are Taken and There is a Inherited Quality Consideration.

  • PHILOSOPHY?- “Does a Wine Spoil or Does it Just Go Bad?”
    • When a Wine Goes Bad Organic Molecules Soften and Their Structure Starts to Subside, Go
      Flat or Lose Their Aromatics as Time Goes On Due to Oxidation.
    • When Something Spoils it Involves Micros Developing In the Item, Making You Sick When You Drink it.

“What Preservation Technology Are You Using to Keep Your Wine.”

**Refer to “BIBLIOGRAPHY/ SOURCES” For Details On Scholarly Works Referenced