Decanting your own young wines???

[rshosted]

First, allow me to start by saying I'm a huge proponent for decanting store bought wines. I have had experience that it opens them up and makes them *MUCH* better, in most cases. Now, with that being said...

Has anyone ever decanted thier own wine that is very young... say six months? Did it help as much as with store wines (considering store-wines are usually as good as they will get, where a home-made wine will get better with another year or two)?

Anyone who has tried it? If not, I may have to give her a spin tonight with a 6 month old Creshendo Syrah that I haven't tried since bottling.

 

[bilbo-in-maine]

Do it and report!

 

[Waldo]

I have done it with success on both my Shiraz kits and tried it on some of my Muscadine but I coud really tell no difference on the Muscadine.

 

[rshosted]

Ok, here's my thoughts... or is it hears my thoughts, or here is... Actually I know. But this science experiment has left me with this idea

I took my Valpolicella that I bottled on March 16. I tried a glass right from the bottle. Still young....

I decanted the rest, and well, it seemed to mellow out the begining and give it more of an easy taste and smooth approach... but still young. Better, but young.

Tonight, I tasted the other half of the decanter. Good. I can taste the oak, pepper, and sweetness of it (thinking I should have added a little tannin to the kit... anyway for another topic).

My thought it that air in small amounts helps wine to age. The fruit breaks down and "rots" the fruit/wine. This makes the wine taste better in most cases. When the wine is so young, it actaully can take a whole night for it to "break down" to improve the taste. While I could taste the difference from decanting, it still needed time.

Overnight did help, but it's much like burning a prime rib steak to rush it. I think there's nothing that will change a young wine to old (save time on it's side).
Though, if you are craving a young wine, decanting will help by a month or two. Otherwise open it a night ahead and see what you get. Better yet... make more wine. You'll eventually catch up with yourself and you'll be rushing to drink wine before it goes bad, rather than drinking it early

But I still maintain if you buy a store wine it should be ready now. Decanting helps significantly. So get a decanter and try it out for yourself.