Aged wines - which glass and how do I handle them?

If you dive into the subject of aged wines for the first time, then you should handle it extremely sensitively. Aged wines need a certain amount of care...

Already when opening the bottle, caution is required. A cork that is older than 20 years - can already crumble or break. But that doesn't matter and with the right accessories, opening a breaking cork is no problem. In the end, a fine sieve helps to prevent the smallest remnants from getting into the glass.

Now about oxygen... The wine reacts with oxygen - so as soon as it gets air, it can develop in taste and change at the same time. It is important to know that it is not always beneficial to decant a wine. Decanting means I transfer the wine into a glass carafe (decanter). This is done when, for example, a mature wine has a lot of deposit (particles that settle). This deposit also contains bitter and tannic substances, which would distort the taste of the wine and therefore it is better separated.

Decanting - is not always the solution!

Another reason for decanting is the supply of oxygen. The wine "breathes", gets air and develops - its aroma, its taste. For example, it becomes softer and also develops completely different flavors with oxygen contact. It is important to know that "a lot helps a lot" is not necessarily appropriate. It can also be that a very mature wine tips with oxygen contact - i.e. becomes undrinkable.

Therefore: Especially with matured wines, caution is advised at first! Rather take a larger glass (with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir a Burgundy glass - with Cabernet Sauvignon a Bordeaux glass) and observe the wine. If the wine does very well, i.e. it develops positively with the oxygen, you can always consider decanting the rest of the wine. Sensitive handling of aged wines is in any case advisable and enhances the pleasure of an aged wine!