Just Breathe: When and How to Aerate Your Wine

One hotly debated topic among wine enthusiasts is whether to aerate their wine. Should they let their wine “breathe” to unlock its full potential, or is it an unnecessary step?

Traditionally, aeration was considered essential for unlocking the full effect from your bottle, particularly with older red wines. However, modern winemaking and sommelier science have shed more light on how oxygen interacts with wine, explains Maria Schuessler, a WSET-certified wine expert based in London.

“A few decades ago, people would tell you to leave any bottle of red wine open on the counter for at least 15 minutes before drinking. That’s been proven to be quite ineffective because the neck of the bottle is too narrow to let enough oxygen in,” she says. “At best, it’ll do nothing; at worst, it gives you the opportunity to knock over an opened bottle of red and spill it all over your floors.”

These days, many wine experts argue that letting more oxygen into a wine can be detrimental, dulling the fruity notes in softer reds like pinot noir or beaujolais. Maria advises that these types of wines should never be aerated as they are meant to be enjoyed straight after opening.

On the other hand, some varieties spring to life when exposed to just the right amount of air. “The wines you want to aerate are any full-bodied, tannic reds – tannins give you that mouth-puckering astringent taste on the tongue – to soften them enough to let you enjoy the tasting notes of the wine,” she says. “An aggressively full-bodied New World wine, like a New Zealand cabernet sauvignon, can really open up and reveal a complex flavor profile when aerated.”

To help demystify the practice, we asked Maria to address a few more myths surrounding aeration so that you can elevate your next wine-drinking experience.

True or False: The older the bottle of wine, the longer you need to aerate it.

False: It’s actually the opposite.  “There’s a common misconception that older wines benefit the most from aeration – think of a dinner party where the host is pouring a 1989 Bordeaux into a crystal decanter,” says Maria. “It’s young wines that are often the most tannic.”

There’s a science behind this. As wine ages, typically in oak barrels, oxygen seeps into the container slowly, gradually aerating the wine over time. This process allows the alcohol and sulfites to evaporate and mellows the harsh tannic notes. The older the bottle, the longer it’s been subject to this slow-paced oxygenation process, making aeration less necessary.

True or False: More aeration is always better.

False: Unfortunately, there’s definitely a risk of over-aerating wine, says Maria.  “Think of that wine that you left in the fridge for too long, and it started to taste like vinegar.”

Aeration should always be approached with a discerning hand, even if you intend to finish the bottle over one evening. “Exposing a wine to oxygen for too long, even over an extended dinner party, can make it taste lifeless and flat and dull the herbaceous and fruity notes that make it taste good.”

Maria says that a few seconds of swirling inside large, open-mouth wine glasses – like BOMSHBEE’s O Wine glasses, for instance – is often enough to give your wine just enough air to introduce new depth to its flavors.

“If you’re choosing to decant a wine, letting it breathe for an hour should be more than enough – any more and the wine starts to lose its spark,” she says. The one exception is older fortified wines, like a 15- or 20-year-old Port, which can benefit from a few hours of decanting.

True or False: You don’t need to invest in specialty equipment to aerate properly.

True: There’s no need to spend a lot of cash on tools like aerators – devices that attach to the top of a bottle, enabling oxygen bubbles to flow as you pour the wine. While you can certainly use one if you’d like, a well-designed decanter works well and looks beautiful.

“Both do the same job in terms of aeration and filtering out any sediment, but of course, decanters are also decorative,” says Maria. “I personally love the versatility and drama that a good wine decanter can bring to a wine-tasting experience.”

Something like BOMSHBEE’s Slone Glass Carafe – a thoughtfully designed piece versatile enough to serve wine, water, and all types of chilled beverages – works perfectly to aerate a full-bodied red or vintage Port while enhancing the look and feel of your next dinner party.

Discover how the right glassware and decanters can bring out the best in every bottle with BOMSHBEE’s elegantly minimalist designs. Cheers to good wine enjoyed with good company!