Decanting serves two main purposes: First, it separates the wine from any sediment that may have formed over time. Most red wines will throw a sediment as they age. This is nothing to fear, just a natural by-product of aging and is actually desirable. What you don’t want, however, is for that sediment to get stirred up before serving your wine. It will make the wine cloudy and can leave a gritty, bitter aftertaste. The second reason for decanting would be to aerate the wine, opening up aromas and flavors. Many age-worthy wines such as Bordeaux, Barolo and Napa Cabernet will benefit from some time in a decanter even before they begin to form any sediment. The exposure to oxygen will soften the tannins and enhance the aromatics.

Decanting wine is an uncomplicated ritual that is often shrouded in misunderstanding. The process of slowly pouring wine from the bottle into a different container without disturbing the sediment at the bottom is a simple act. All you need is a corkscrew, a clean, dry vessel and a reason to drink some wine.

The overwhelming majority of wines purchased in our stores are intended for immediate consumption and don’t need to be decanted. That said, decanting a simple everyday quaffer will not hurt the wine so why not have some fun with your Wednesday night pizza wine and decant it.

Having a wine collection to share with friends and family is one of life’s great pleasures. I love pulling out a bottle of well-aged vino that not only impresses but is a delight to drink. Just recently, I have been purchasing all the 2015 Brunello and 2016 Barolo I can fit into my budget. Of course, I don’t plan on drinking these wines until they have aged for a few years so proper storage is essential. Living in Florida certainly presents its challenges to storing wine long term. Most of our homes don’t have cool, dark cellars, but that shouldn’t prevent you from following a few simple tips for storing wine effectively.

Proper temperature is the most important factor to consider. In general, the ideal temperature should be around 55 degrees Fahrenheit and be kept as stable as possible. Bottles should be stored horizontally to keep the corks from drying out. Care should be given to avoid light and vibration. A final consideration should be made to the proper humidity, between 60 –70 percent. At low humidity, corks can dry out. With too much humidity, labels can mold and begin to peel off.

Assuming you do not have a romantic, chilly, subterranean cavern in your backyard, what’s the best way to keep your wine cool, dark, still and lying on its side? If you are storing wine for just a few days or even weeks, it’s not necessary to follow all these guidelines, however heat and light are never kind to wine. A dark, room temperature closet is sufficient to store wine short term. As you become more serious about collecting, select ABC Fine Wine & Spirits stores lease wine lockers by the month. I’ve rented a locker for over ten years now and have never regretted the investment. Visit abcfws.com/contact-us to check availability near you. Another option is an in-home storage unit, which are available in a variety of sizes.

In short, serving temperature has everything to do with the wine’s style. A good analogy is this: Would you drink lemonade warm? Of course not! That’s why white wines taste better chilled. It’s because their sugar, acidity and alcohol structure make them better suited for colder temperatures.

For sparkling wines, I suggest serving them cold, between 38 and 45 degrees. For white wines, slightly warmer, between 45 and 50 degrees. As for red wines, lighter-bodied reds, such as Pinot Noir, are best served cool - between 55 and 60 degrees. And fuller-bodied reds, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, should be served slightly below room temperature (between 62 and 68 degrees).

When it comes to wine ratings, I always suggest guests use these strictly as a guide. Keep in mind that these ratings are the opinion of one person, and their own personal taste in wine can influence what they will score, high versus low. For example, one of the most famous wine critics, Robert Parker, LOVED big, rich, high alcohol, full-bodied wines. If you also enjoy this style, odds are you would love most wines that he scored well.

What’s considered a good score? Most people seem to agree that anything 90 points or above is outstanding, but only if it’s a style you like. I would caution you not to overlook anything in the 85-89-point range. Again, use ratings for guidance, but always pay attention to the source and try to note which sources you agree with. And do not be disappointed if you find a source whose highly rated wine you didn’t enjoy; it just means your taste buds and theirs are different. That is all a part of the experience of drinking and enjoying wine.

Sulfites, or sulfur dioxide (SO2), are chemical compounds that occur naturally at low levels during the fermentation process of winemaking. They can also be added in by winemakers themselves. Their antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-enzymatic properties make them a popular resource to help the preservation of wine. In the last 100 years, sulfites have been used in different stages of the winemaking process. They are traditionally added before and after fermentation to inhibit yeast and bacteria from producing undesirable compounds, and before bottling the final product.

The amount of sulfites in a wine can differ depending on a number of variables. In general, dry wines require less sulfites than sweet wines. Wines with higher sugar require more sulfites to combat secondary fermentation of the remaining sugar. If a wine is labeled organic or biodynamic, they must follow a set of regulations that limit the amount of sulfites. Find more on those regulations here. Natural Wine is a fairly new category, that excludes the addition of sulfites, or any other additives that do not naturally occur during the fermentation process. They use new techniques that forgo the use of preservatives completely, and at the same time deliver fresh and stable products. Wines with little to no sulfites must be consumed very soon after bottling. Due to a lack in sulfites, very few of them have a 1-2-year shelf-life.

A chilled wine can go from the refrigerator to the table and back again without suffering any negative effects to the quality of the wine. It is a common misconception that a gradual temperature change will damage a wine. While it is true that wine does not like heat, it’s only when those temps are excessively warm or rapid that any wine would suffer adversely. Think of a wine left inside an unairconditioned car on a hot Florida day or stored in a sweltering summer garage. A wine exposed to temperatures approaching 120 degrees Fahrenheit for any considerable time would most likely be compromised.

Here is a practical scenario to back my assertion: Many wine lovers, myself included, own wine fridges or cellaring units to age their wines. The optimal cellaring temperature is 55 degrees Fahrenheit for all wines, both red and white. Before a dinner party with friends, I might select a few red wines from my cellaring unit and leave them on the table to gradually come up to proper room temperature for drinking. Should a bottle happen to not be opened for some reason, I would not have any reservations about returning it back to my wine fridge to resume cellaring and be enjoyed at a future date.

There is not a worse feeling for wine lovers than opening that bottle you have been anxiously waiting to try, only to find that it is spoiled. You can use your senses, yes, even hearing (think champagne) to determine whether a bottle of wine is good to drink or not.

Let's start with our eyes and what they can tell us about a wine. As red wines age, they tend to lose color. All the things that give wine flavor and texture start to slowly bond together and drop to the bottom of the bottle as sediment, leaving the wine lighter than it was before. Red wines go from purple, to ruby, to garnet, to tawny and finally to brown. As for white wines, due to oxidation, they gain color with age, going from lemon green, to lemon, to gold, to amber and ultimately to brown.

Now let’s use our noses to identify some of the major flaws a wine may have. First things first, we need to talk about cork taint. Just because a wine smells bad, it does not necessarily mean the wine is “corked.” Cork taint, or TCA (trichloroanisol) is a frustrating flaw that makes a wine smell musty, like wet cardboard. It occurs when a moldy cork or winemaking equipment get sealed up into a finished bottle of wine. It can even get under a screw cap. The biggest problem with cork taint is that people have different sensitivities to it. In small doses it can make a wine smell more boring than bad. Many people do not even recognize when a wine has a slightly tainted cork, and just continue drinking it feeling mildly disappointed.

There are many other wine flaws that have various strong odors and are easily identified. Such odors include burnt matches, rotten eggs, garlic or onion, nail polish remover, rancid butter and barn yard. If any of these smells come up from your glass, consider dumping it and opening something else.

As far as taste is concerned, if the wine smells bad, it will most likely taste bad as well. The easiest flaws to taste are again, cork taint (will taste like wet cardboard), heat damage (will taste cooked or baked) and oxidation (will taste overly nutty, with no fruit character whatsoever). Use your nose first, before you go putting potentially bad liquid in your mouth.

Just for fun, let’s discuss hearing. This will only apply to opening sparkling wines, but here we go: If a bottle of Champagne or sparkling wine has been improperly stored, it will most likely lose its lovely carbonation. You will have no opportunity to hear the delightful “POP!” when ceremoniously opening the bottle at a celebration or dinner. No hiss or pop = no fun. It may still be ok to drink, but it certainly will not have the expressive exuberance you were hoping for.

Tannins are a group of chemical compounds found in a lot of the foods and drinks we enjoy every day. You will find them in coffee, tea and dark chocolate, as well as different fruits like grapes. Grapes have tannins in the skin, seeds and stems. In white wine, the freshly pressed juice is most always separated immediately from the remaining skins, seeds and stems and is then sent directly to tanks to preserve freshness. This also prevents any maceration, or breaking down of the grape‘s skin from moisture, which would introduce tannins into the juice. It is just the opposite in red wine making, where grapes are crushed and allowed to spend time with the tannin rich pomace (skins, stems and seeds) in order to extract color, flavor and the all-important tannins. These tannins act as a preservative, helping the wine fight off the effects of oxygen and assist in the wine’s development and aging.

Some grape varieties are naturally high in tannins, like Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Merlot. Others are relatively low, most notably Pinot Noir, Grenache and Gamay. Once these grapes become wine, they are usually aged in oak barrels, which add another level of tannins.

Good or bad? Well, good in any case unless you don’t like the feel of them. Some tannins are described as ‘green’ and can be astringent or bitter, which is not everyone’s favorite. But in other cases, depending on the amount maceration or aging, the wine may display elegant or fine tannins which are less aggressive and typically much more pleasant. High levels of tannins dry your mouth immediately, which is usually the reason not everyone prefers them. However, those same tannins can assist in cleaning your palate of oily or fatty food, which is precisely what you do want in your red wines when serving them with meat and game.