How to decant wine

Video: 【MenClub Wine 101】Decanting Wine : How to Do It Like a Pro

Content

Steps
Part 1 of 2: Expression Basics
Part 2 of 2: How to Express Wine Properly
Warnings
What do you need

Attention:this article is intended for people over 18 years of age.

Developed in Burgundy, the wine decanting procedure is the process of separating new wine from the sediment and pouring the drink from one container to another using simple equipment and the force of gravity. Expressing wine is a more delicate process than pouring it through an electric siphon or pump, during which sediment can enter the second vessel. Depending on the type of wine, you may need to strain it several times during and immediately after the fermentation process. If you want to get it right, you can learn how and when to decant wine so that the process runs as smoothly as possible.

Steps

Part 1 of 2: Expression Basics

1 Obtain the necessary equipment for expressing wine. You will need a few relatively simple tools, most of which you can easily buy from outlets that sell home wine products. In order to properly strain wine, you will need:
- At least two bottles or sterilized buckets;
- Siphon tube;
- Water seal.
2 Sterilize the siphon tube with a solution of water and potassium metabisulfite or sodium pyrosulfite. These substances are commercially available. A tablespoon of potassium metabisulfite or sodium pyrosulfite must be dissolved in 4 liters of water.
- Everything that the wine touches must also be sterilized with such a solution.Usually, you should rinse the bucket with it or run the liquid through a tube, then pour it out to a safe place.
- This disinfectant solution is quite corrosive, so you are advised to use it in a well-ventilated area and wear respiratory protection and gloves.
3 Place the wine you want to decant on an elevated surface. Take a container of wine and sediment, open it and place it on an elevated surface. Depending on the amount of wine, you may need a lot of space or just the table top and kitchen floor. Make sure the siphon tube reaches the container where you will be decanting the wine.
- Since the procedure is due to the force of gravity, it is necessary that the full bottle of wine is higher than the highest container into which you will decant the wine, otherwise the process cannot take place.
4 Place the siphon in the bottle. Place the knurled end of the siphon into the bottle, never touching the sediment at the bottom. You should clearly see the sediment line before decanting the wine, it should be much darker and cloudier at the bottom. The tube should not reach 2.5-5 cm to the sediment.
- Place the other end of the siphon in a clean container where you will decant the wine, or let it hang over the top. Once you start the procedure, you will have to quickly place it in a container. Check that the tube reaches it.
5 Start siphoning the wine. This is not difficult at all: start drawing the wine from the free end of the tube, as if you are drinking from a straw, until the drink begins to flow down the tube, then direct it into the vessel as quickly as possible. You will quickly learn how to do this without spilling or swallowing wine, although the latter is not the worst option.
- When the wine starts flowing, immediately insert the tube into the container and try to keep it flowing calmly. Be careful not to get sediment and air into the tube, otherwise a lot of oxygen will penetrate into the wine.
- Once the second bottle is full or sediment starts to flow, clamp the tube to stop the wine flow and disconnect the siphon.
6 Accept your losses. Winemaking is a whole science, and in the process you will lose some of the wine. Perhaps you have not poured everything through the siphon? Looking at the spilled wine and liquid with sediment, do not be upset that this good is lost - this is part of the work.
- Don't worry, you can try collecting the leftover wine right on top of the lees and throwing the rest away. When making homemade wine, there will still be some sediment left in the end.
7 Close the freshly filled bottle with a water seal. It usually needs to be screwed on securely and pressed down well, but different closures attach differently, so follow the manufacturer's instructions. Most of these closures must be slipped directly onto the neck of the bottle.

Part 2 of 2: How to Express Wine Properly

1 Strain the wine every time it needs to be refilled. Basically, winemakers do this when they pour wine from the first vessel, where fermentation took place, into the second, and when they move it from the second vessel after fermentation to a vessel where the wine will age. Also, wine is often decanted after fermentation in order to better clean it and remove sediment. The process itself and the thoroughness of decantation will greatly depend on the type of wine you make and your taste.
- Some winemakers decant the wine once, and some decant 4-5 times, depending on the flavor and clarity of the wine they want.
- If you end up filtering your wine, you don't need to strain it more than 1-2 times.
2 Express the wine for the first time in 5-7 days. Before the end of the week of fermentation, the wine needs to be poured into a bottle with a water seal, so in any case you will have to move it from the first vessel, which is a great opportunity to strain.
- Don't strain the wine too early. Fermentation produces a lot of gas and it is dangerous to pump too early when these gases are active.
- In general, the procedure will be safe if you use a water seal that releases gases from the vessel, but does not allow oxygen, microbes and bacteria to get inside.
3 Strain when the fermentation process is over. The second decantation is done when the wine has finished fermenting, sometimes after a few days or even a month. Basically, decanting is done in order to remove as much yeast as possible, since it is well anchored in the liquid and no longer interferes with the fermentation process.
- Since the yeast becomes less active a week after the start of fermentation, it may not defend itself well against contaminants, which means that you need to use a water seal. The less yeast sediment in this first step, the better. At this stage, 80% of the total sediment is formed.
4 Strain the wine again. Most wines are decanted no more and no less than 3 times. The third decantation should be done when the wine has become completely transparent in order to remove the remaining sediment and finally clear the drink.
- Some winemakers may want to strain the wine again if the final product needs to be very clear and transparent in order to satisfy the aesthetic preferences of consumers and to diversify their stock. Some winemakers decant the wine a few more times to get as clear a drink as possible.
- If you add sulfites or plan to filter your wine before bottling, you don't need to decant any more.
5 Don't decant every wine. Red wines are traditionally decanted, but some white wines do not need to be refined and are instead bottled without decanting when infused with leftover yeast. Chardonnay, champagne and muscadet traditionally insist on lees, which some winemakers believe helps to change its taste and give it the oaky flavor characteristic of the drink.
- If you are making a white wine and want to try not to decant and insist on the lees, you need to taste it often and bottle it when it tastes like it, otherwise the drink may go bad.
6 It is better to express less often than more often. Each time you decant wine, you provide the wine with access to a large amount of oxygen, delaying the maturation process and exposing it to contamination with microorganisms and bacteria. Since the process of preventing infection is long and the person can make mistakes, it is best to pump less frequently.