Why sober up before drinking red wine?
The purpose of decanting red wine is to let the wine liquid contact the air, undergo oxidation reaction, emit aroma, soften tannins, and make the wine taste smoother. After bottling, red wine will enter a sleep phase, the aroma and flavor are in a closed state, and it needs to be “awakened”, so it needs to be sobered up.
Sobering, as the name implies, is to wake up the wine. The purpose is to allow the wine to undergo an oxidation reaction with oxygen in the air. This reaction can soften the tannins of the wine and stimulate the flavors of various substances in the wine body. At the same time, the excess sulfur dioxide in the wine is released.
Why sober up?
Because the wine body is in a relatively closed environment before drinking, the so-called rotten water does not flow, sobering is to make the dead water glow with its due vitality, in order to make the blunt tannins round. , in order to achieve a better balance of the wine, but also to highlight its characteristics and taste more supple.
What wine needs to be sobered up?
Whether it is necessary to sober up, this question must return to the body of the wine itself. If you have a bottle of wine with a thin body, loose structure and a dull fruity taste, then you should not sober up, because sobering will also make it weak. The structure is weaker.
For young wines with heavier tannins, such as fine wines from the Bordeaux region, full-bodied white wines, such as Sauternes Ladies and Burgundy dry whites, need to be fully decanted through a decanter.
For those aged champagne, you should not use a decanter to decanter, but instead use a wine glass, because the oxidation rate of the champagne itself is very fast, and the area in contact with the air does not need to be too large, just need to be properly Sober up to be at your best.
