Great responses here. Thank you all for your thoughts. Glad I purchased a Durand the same day as the bottles! I’ll plan on standing the bottles up for 3 days, then open 1 of the bottles 5 hours before the dinner, and another 4 hours before. Will not decant.
Stay tuned for tasting notes from the evening!
I would definitely decant for sediment. I’ve had too many bottles where basically the second half is not nearly as good because of sediment. Even with careful pouring, it happens. The only way to avoid it and get most of the wine poured clear is by decanting.
An hour seems to me not so short a time at all. I’ve seen some amazing wines fall apart much more quickly. Many people like to leave their wine in the glass for extended periods to warm up and oxidise but I’m not one of them.
I hate to break it to you, but those wines were already dead. A decant or a couple hours of air is not going to do any harm to properly stored old wines.
I hate to break it to you, but those wines were not. I’ve had some magical wines that were exceptional for about half an hour after they were opened, but after that started to fall apart.
For example 1920 Lopez de Heredia Gran Reserva from a Spanish cellar where it had been most - if not all - of its life. Absolutely magical for about half an hour. Started to feel a bit old and tired after that. An hour after it was opened, it was flat and oxidized. But you’d be a complete tool for saying the wine was dead for that first half an hour.
So you eeked a bit of enjoyment out of the bottle, doesn’t mean the wine wasn’t already on the doorstep of death. Provenance is part of the picture but natural cork variation is another piece. And 100 year old bottle is much older than what the OP has.
Which is not “already dead”. Plus “doorstep of death” would imply the wine was inches away from being completely oxidative - which was definitely not the case. The wine was evolved, yet not noticeably oxidative upon opening - only after some time in the glass.
Duh.
I’ve had this same thing happen many times with much younger wines. It’s just way easier to remember 100-yo Heredia GR as an example because you don’t get to drink wines like these that often.
I would be very cautious about over-decanting or over-aerating '66 Lafite. '66 was a tannic vintage and the concern has always been that the tannins would long outlive the fruit. Lafite was a serious underperformed during that time, as well. I would expect all of those bottles to taste dried out, if they aren’t oxidized.
This.
Yes, old wine can sometimes fall apart quickly with air, but decanting immediately before serving is no more harmful than pouring into the glass. Sediment is a guarantee of a sub-par experience.
Those wines were absolutely not already dead. In fact they were spectacular. A decant of a couple of hours can destroy a 50 year old wine. Some wines can hold up to it, but many cannot. And you miss the pleasure of what may be the absolute best it can give.
I had an example of one last month, a 1950’s Pomerol. Had it next to a 2002 Latour. It was stunning, brilliant, especially in the nose. In fact everyone preferred it to the Latour when for the first hour. Then it lost its steam and the Latour came back punching to win WOTN. And the Latour was decanted. But for that first hour, the Pomerol dominated.
Most people who think old wines are “dead” actually just aren’t used to, or don’t like, the secondary or tertiary flavors that come with ageing wine. This is why the vast majority of wine isn’t aged at all. It’s just drunk because people like the fruit bomb of new wine.
What Tim McCracken said. The only person I know who drinks more old Bordeaux than Tim is Francois Audouze, and Tim learned some of the techniques he uses by drinking with Francois. I definitely would not decant.
BTW, I like 1966 Lafite a lot. If your bottles have been treated well, you are in for a treat.
I watched the SommTV doc on Lafite and the owner double decants old bottles. I think he opened and double decanted the ‘45?
It’s quite common for people to misunderstand how to use the Durand the first time, so I might try it on some other bottle before you do the 66s. Look at the instructions closely — the way it looks like it would work isn’t the way it actually works.
Also, they’re your bottles and you can do whatever you want, but I think you’d get far more enjoyment having the wine on three occasions than one. Surround the bottle with some other good wine before and after to make there be enough. (Of course if bottle 1 isn’t sound, then go to bottle 2)
I’ve seen lots of responses in this thread with which I agree, but these are the two with which I most strongly agree. And I would add - before you use the Durand - READ THE INSTRUCTIONS!!
Enjoy!
Well, it’s no fun if we can’t disagree.
I think sediment is part of the experience with old Bordeaux. If you pour carefully from the bottle you should only get it towards the very end, at which point I personally want it there. It will be coarse and will not ruin the wine (as it often can with wines made from lighter skinned grapes). In fact, I often find that the last dregs have more vigour than previous glasses after exposure to air in the bottle. I think people who double decant bottles of Bordeaux of this age are crazy. It might just work with bottles that have lain undisturbed at the Chateau for sixty years but with recently purchased bottles you’re radically increasing your chances of a bad experience.
I don’t own a Durand and rarely use one. I don’t think I’ve had a cork fall in for the better part of a decade and I drink a lot of old wines. Just get hold of an old-fashioned corkscrew with a wide worm and you’ll never need it.
I don’t own a Durand and have only used one a few times. However opening old wines without one does require a fair bit of skill and finesse. I usually bring a few different types of corkscrews and use them based on the initial pull. Totally agree about the wide worm, it is critical to pulling out an old cork intact. And they are difficult to find.
Port Durand is also nice
Great. Don’t need a Durand just use a corkscrew that nobody can find. Super helpful… 
