There have been numerous decanting threads in the past, but I don’t remember one that really addresses the differences between double decanting and other means of preparing wines.
I double decant a lot, partly because of convenience, ease in transporting wines, and I like having a wine in it’s original bottle, plus I don’t usually have time to slow ox, and I haven’t decided if I really believe…
Anyway, there seem to be those who believe that double decanting doesn’t really expose a wine to much air, and once you put it back in the bottle, airing mostly stops, as opposed to leaving the wine in a decanter, which they feel is the only thing that allows continuing aeration.
However, I find that a double decanted wine, say performed 2 hours before drinking, seems to start a process of evolution over the ensuing two hours fairly similar to what would happen if left open in a decanter (if one happens to get a little impatient and sample a small amount now and then…)
Much of this depends upon the chemistry of what’s happening with oxygenation of a wine. Does it all depend upon surface area exposed over a period of time? Or does an entire bottle of wine, exposed to oxygen in the act of pouring, then closed up again, integrate that oxygen over a period of time? With a decanted bottle, the entire bottle is exposed once, then a smaller surface area thereafter. With a double decant, the entire bottle is exposed twice.
Greg dal Piaz converted me to double decanting for Barolo/Barbaresco. He showed that doing this 8-10 hours ahead, even with old wines, works like a charm.
If you leave a wine in a decanter, lots of aromas can blow off. I assume the double decanting injects the oxygen without allowing those things to escape. But that’s an uneducated assumption.
I too like to double decant in this manner and i think it works well for burgundy. Whether it aerates at the same rate as in a decanter for the same period of time i cannot say.
In theory, double decanting forces more air into the wine. You add air when the wine is emptied from the bottle into the decanter and again, when the wine is returned to the bottle. I do this before taking some bottles to restaurants. For details on double decanting: Learn about Decanting Wine, When, How and Why to Decant Wine
I too feel that a double decant is beneficial, mainly to a young wine. With the oxygen integrating sooner it really opens up the wine without blowing off those precious aromas if you place the cork back in. I may be a bit hesitant on some older vintages and might like to watch the wine transform in the glass or open decanter. Not knowing is the fun part though!
I’d be hesitant with delicate wines, but with sound old nebbiolo – even 30- and 40-year-old bottles – it works. And you do still get evolution the glass.
I double decant all my old Nebbs. 8 hours can be too much some times though. I do use a funnel and minimize splashing and I make sure to stop at the first hint of sediment.