Just Breathe

One of the hardest things for me to learn about wine was patience. I did not grow up around wine, and equated it to other forms of alcohol in the “pop the top and chug” sense. It took me several failed attempts, but only one successful, to understand that just a little bit of patience will often drastically enhance your experience and leave more satisfied. I am referring to letting a wine breathe. This is as simple as opening the bottle and allowing the air around the wine do its work. This allows wine warm up and expose aromas and flavors that my otherwise be missed. Delicious right?

There are few widely accepted options each with their benefit. First of which is simply opening the bottle and letting it sit, not the most efficient but free and easy if you plan ahead. The second is an aerator; they are quite common, and range anywhere from $25-$45. We got ours at Amazon click the link to see what specials they are running. We discovered these wonderful devices three years ago and is truly a life saver. You pour the wine through this devise and it sifts through a fine screen allowing air to circulate through the wine as it is poured into your glass. This method is by far the quickest, but not the best, but better than nothing. The last is by decanting, this to me is the best way to air out your wine. It isn’t easy to describe but check the picture for details. The reservoir allows a pocket of air to sit close to the wine and maximize its potential. To be fair it is faster than just letting a bottle sit but still takes time and a little planning, not to mention you better finish the bottle. The lack of a lid prevents you from prolonging the wines life much longer then an evening. 

Decanter

So…patience is good, No brainer right? That is what I thought, and then I realized the blatant lack of patience in my everyday life. This concept recently reared its ugly head in of all places the Best Buy parking lot. We were making a quick run after a miserable Bears playoff loss, and ran into the 2 biggest dummies in Bloomington.  (The whole story is too crazy and long to include here but I will be glad to share over a glass of wine) Now, I won’t lie and tell you I handled it perfectly, and it wasn’t my proudest moment, but all things considered it wasn’t too bad. But, as we drove home I found myself a little embarrassed of my reactions in the parking lot. I realized the insignificance of these people and the situation.

So if want the most out of your life and wines, practice some patience and “Just Breathe”

Cheers- Brandon