The Decanting Standard
Five steps for decanting at the table, from the question to the last pour. A bottle stood upright for a day decants clean; one fetched from the rack does not.
- Who
- Sommeliers, and servers trained to decant
- When
- Every bottle decanted, at the guest’s request or our suggestion
- You need
- A decanter rinsed and smelt, a candle or torch, a cradle, an underliner
- Measured by
- Host asked before any wine is decanted
- Wine tasted before it is decanted
- Bottle and cork left beside the decanter
5 steps
01
Ask the host
Suggest decanting for old reds with sediment and young reds that need air, and for any wine the guest asks. Ask the host first, say why in one sentence, and never decant a fragile old bottle unasked.
Say this
“This 2008 has some sediment, Mr Moretti. Shall I decant it, so the last glass is as clear as the first?”
Common mistake Decanting every red because it looks impressive. A fragile old wine can fade in the decanter within the hour.
02
Prepare the bottle
If you know in advance, stand older bottles upright for 24 hours. If not, carry the bottle from the rack in a cradle, at the angle it lay. Rinse the decanter, smell it, set the light on the side table.
Say this
“Table 12, 19:30: Brunello 2008 standing since yesterday. Decanter rinsed and checked.”
Common mistake Picking the bottle up by the neck and turning it upright on the way. The sediment you meant to leave behind is now in the wine.
03
Taste, then decant
Present the bottle label up and open it in the cradle where you can. Pour the host’s taste before decanting, or taste a few drops yourself, so a faulty wine never reaches the decanter.
Say this
“Your Brunello di Montalcino, 2008. I’ll let you taste it before I decant.”
Common mistake Decanting first and tasting afterwards. If the wine is corked, the decanter is tainted and ten minutes are gone.
04
Pour over light
Pour slowly in one steady movement, with the bottle’s shoulder over the light. Stop as soon as the sediment reaches the neck. The last 2–3 cm stay in the bottle, because that is where the sediment sits.
Say this
“The last few centimetres stay in the bottle. That is where the sediment sits.”
Common mistake Stopping and starting to check the light. Each time the bottle tips back, the sediment rolls forward into the wine.
05
Leave the bottle
Pour the first glasses from the decanter in the usual order. Leave the empty bottle and its cork on an underliner beside the decanter, so the table can see what they are drinking all evening.
Say this
“I’ll leave the bottle here beside the decanter, so you have the label.”
Common mistake Clearing the empty bottle with the foil. The guest is drinking from a glass jug and cannot show anyone what it was.
Decant or Not
When the team suggests decanting, when it doesn’t, and the reason to give the host in one sentence. When in doubt, ask.
Brief one row per pre-service meeting for six days, with a bottle from your list for each row. The head sommelier signs off each server after watching one full decant, from the question to the last pour.
The Standards Library.
No. 93 · Wine
The Sparkling Wine Standard
Five steps for opening and pouring sparkling wine, Champagne included. The bottle holds about six bar of pressure, so the thumb stays on the cork.
No. 94 · Wine
The Corkage Standard
Five steps for the guest who brings their own bottle. The fee is told before the cork comes out, and the bottle gets the service of a wine from the list.