A common question I’m asked is when to aerate or decant a wine. Before I dive into the answer, we first have to grasp the fundamentals of each concept. When you use an aerator or decanter, you’re trying to achieve a similar purpose, that is, to expand the surface area of the wine exposed to the air. Why do this? It jumpstarts oxidation, evaporation, and allows the wine to “breath.” When winos say “breath,” they are referring to breaking down the chemical compounds that have s