We Tested 13 Wine Decanters and Came Away with Two Favorites

Editor's Note: Our winner, the Made In Decanter is out of stock as of April 2024. We have reached out to Made In, and will update this story once we have received confirmation of a restock date.

Have you ever noticed that the second glass of wine tastes better than the first, even if they’re from the same bottle? This could be because the wine has had time to open up. Wine—especially big, bold reds—needs airflow to unlock its best flavors. In a corked bottle, wine is essentially grounded—it’s locked in its room and can’t play with its friends (oxygen molecules!). Once the cork is removed, the party starts. 

However, wine bottles are narrow. Even in an open bottle, only a small amount of wine is exposed to oxygen. The solution: a decanter. While wine might take several hours to aerate in a bottle, most red wines need under an hour in a decanter thanks to the larger surface area,

Now, almost anything can be used as a decanter. Pouring wine into a pitcher, vase, fun porrón, or blender will allow it to breathe. But a decanter is much more elegant...and rather fun to break out for a dinner party. (It also makes a great gift for a wine lover.) To determine which decanters paired design with functionality, we tested 13 models.

The Winners, at a Glance

The Best All-Purpose Wine Decanter

Made In Decanter

$99 at Walmart View on Made In Cookware

This was a simple, elegant decanter that checked all of the boxes. It allowed wine ample room to breathe, and was easy to pour from.

Another Great Wine Decanter

Riedel Cabernet Decanter

$65 $43 at Amazon $65 at Wayfair View on Riedel.com

Beautiful and delicate (its one con, as this makes cleanup more precarious), this wine decanter was easy to pour into and from. At $54, it's reasonably priced, too.

The Tests

• Decanting Test: We poured one bottle of red into each decanter to see if it could hold 750 milliliters of wine (a standard-size bottle). We also assessed how easy it was to decant the wine into the vessel—noting if the wine splashed and if the opening was large enough to allow for comfortable pouring. 
• Aeration Test: For each decanter, we observed the aeration method and tested any accessories meant to enhance aeration.
• Taste Test: We decanted one bottle of wine for an hour in each model, tasting every 15 minutes to note its development. The same type of red wine was used for every decanter. 
• Ease of Pouring Test: We poured four glasses of wine from each decanter. We noted how easy it was to handle the decanter, and looked for any design elements that caused drips or spills. 
• Sediment Test: We filled each decanter with 750 milliliters of water, red food coloring, and 2 tablespoons of coffee grounds. We poured four glasses of this, observing how easy it was to identify sediment and stop pouring before the grounds reached the glass.
• Cleanup Test: We cleaned each decanter according to manufacturer instructions, using included accessories where relevant.

What We Learned

Surface Area Was Key

All it takes to aerate a wine is exposure to oxygen. Decanters with a wide base create a shallow pool of wine with a large surface area. This exposes more of the wine to oxygen at once and will decrease the time the wine needs to breathe. Models like the Made In Decanter opened wine more quickly than the tall and narrow Riedel Wine Friendly Decanter.  Some models, like the Rabbit Pura Decanterand Onearf Wine Decanter included design elements that agitated wine as we poured. The goal of these features is to force more air through the wine and speed up aeration. During testing, however, they did not significantly improve the decanting process. The wine still needed to breathe to open up fully.

What About Electric Wine Decanters?

We tested one decanter that came with an electronic base: the vSpin Wine Aerator. When combined with a magnet, it spun the wine in the decanter and created a vortex. This introduced even more air into the wine and rapidly accelerated aeration. It was able to dispel the flavor of alcohol and bring forward fruit flavors in a bottle of red wine in just 20 minutes. However, it's also wicked expensive, at about $250, and because of this, we thought it still felt gimmicky. Our advice: for the price, just get a standard decanter.

A Sharper Angle Wasn't Better

The angle of the spout to the base determines how much you’ll have to tilt the decanter when you pour a glass of wine. Decanters like the Rabbit Pura Decanting System and Zalto Mystique feature a sharp angle—almost 90 degrees—between the neck and the base. This seems fine for the first couple of pours, but once you reach the end of the bottle, they need to be turned almost completely upside down to pour a glass. This makes it difficult to control the flow and separate any remaining sediment from the wine. A surprising number of decanters failed this test. Models with sloped sides only need to be titled slightly past 90 degrees to pour the very last drop.

Too Narrow Necks Were Difficult

The size of the decanter's opening determined how easy it was to decant into. Decanters with very narrow necks, with openings of about one-and-a-half inches, required a super steady hand to pour the wine or risk sloshing. Our favorite models had openings that were two-and-a-half to three inches wide. 

The length of the neck also made a difference when it was time to pour. When filled, decanters are on the heavy side. The weight of the wine alone is around 1.65 pounds. Most decanters fall in the 1- to 2-pound range. All together, this makes for a hefty serving vessel. To pour wine from a decanter, you grasp the neck and tilt it and models with very short necks (two to three inches long, compared to our favorite models' four to six inches), were difficult to hold and pour.

Tapered vs. Flat Lips

Models with sharp, tapered lips were most effective at creating a steady stream of wine. The taper creates a natural place for wine to flow, and the sharp edge cuts the stream off quickly when the decanter is turned upright. Decanters with a wide flat edge, like the BTäT Decanter with Stand, were more likely to cause drips.

Filters and Sediment

It’s perfectly normal for a wine to include sediment, especially an older bottle. Sediment is an organic material, usually made up of crystallized tartaric acid, yeast cells, and fragments of grape skin. While it might not be pleasant, it’s not harmful if consumed. Professional sommeliers typically remove sediment by sight. When pouring wine into a decanter, they stop just before the sediment flows into the neck of the wine bottle, leaving any unwanted gunk (and a small amount of wine) behind. This process takes some skill. In theory, a decanter with a filter can help those with a less practiced hand achieve the same results. However, the one wine decanter with a filter we were going to recommend became unavailable shortly before publishing and we found other models with filters worked too slowly. The wine ended up backing up in the filter, making pouring difficult.

Plus, when decanting an older wine, a filter alone might not do the trick. According to wine educator Tess Rose Lampert, not even a filter can remove 100% of the fine sediment in aged wine. Instead, for best results, store the bottle upright for several hours before decanting, and stop pouring about 1/2-inch from the bottom.

The Criteria: What to Look for in a Wine Decanter

Look for a decanter with a wide base. This will create a large surface area that will quickly aerate your wine. For ease of pouring, consider the spout. Look for a decanter with sloped sides and a thin, angled lip. This will make it easy to pour a steady stream of wine down to the last drop.

The Best Wine Decanters

The Best All-Purpose Wine Decanter

Made In Decanter

$99 at Walmart View on Made In Cookware

What we liked: This decanter strikes a balance between elegance and strength. The thin, glass edge is easy to control when pouring wine, but the material feels sturdy enough for stress-free hand-washing. The sloped shoulders make it possible to serve an entire bottle of wine without dumping the last glass on the table, and the thin, angled spout gives the pourer enough control to stop the flow if any sediment remains. Compared to other models, the compact size of the Made-In decanter makes for easy storage. 

What we didn’t: This is a no-fuss, no-frills model. It’s well-suited for everyday use, but at about $100, it’s one of the more expensive models we tested.

Key Specs

• Weight: 1 pound
• Material: Crystal glass
• Stated capacity: 50.7 ounces
• Dimensions: 9.84 x 5.83 inches
• What's included: Decanter
• Decanter type: Standard

Another Great Wine Decanter

Riedel Cabernet Decanter

$65 $43 at Amazon $65 at Wayfair View on Riedel.com

What we liked: This was a solid, basic decanter. It poured easily and aerated well. It was also very lightweight, which made for easy pouring, even when the decanter was full. It had a wide, stable base and spacious opening that allowed for easy, stress- and splash-free decanting.

What we didn’t: The glass was very thin and required careful cleaning.

Key Specs

• Weight: .75 pounds
• Material: Glass
• Stated capacity: 38 ounces
• Dimensions: 4.88 x 9.05 inches
  
• What's included: Decanter
• Decanter type: Standard

The Competition

• Rabbit Super-Aerating Decanter System: We liked this decanter and wanted to name it a winner (it has a filter), but it appears to be discontinued.
• Le Chateau Wine Decanter: This simple decanter aerated wine well. It lost points because the steep angle of the neck made it difficult to pour the final few glasses.
• Rabbit Pura Decanting System: This short, sturdy decanter dripped when we poured. The included filter separated sediment, but it drained slowly, making decanting difficult. 
• BTäT Decanter with Stand: The included accessories made cleaning this decanter extremely easy, but the wide, flat edge caused drips when pouring.
• HiCoup Red Wine Decanter: This large decanter makes a design statement, but the size and thin glass composition make cleaning a challenge.
• Onearf Wine Decanter and Carafe: This model uses an airlock to decant and aerate wine. Attach a bottle to the airlock, and invert it to drain the wine into the decanter. The airlock was a little unstable, required two hands to operate, and may pop or fizz, spraying wine all over your shirt. 
• Vintorio GoodGlassware Wine Decanter: This solid, simple decanter aerated and separated sediment well. However, the thick glass edge caused a few drips while pouring. 
• vSpin Wine Aerator: If you’re in a huge hurry, this decanter works well. Drop a magnet into the base of the decanter, set it on the included plate, and press the power button. The base rotates and creates a vortex that rapidly aerates the wine. Although effective, we found this product slightly gimmicky. It's also very expensive.
• Riedel Wine Friendly Decanter: This tall, narrow decanter was slightly unstable and wobbled on the table. 
• Zalto Mystique Decanter: The wide base of this decanter aerated wine efficiently, but it required a very steep angle to pour. This made serving the last few glasses of wine difficult. 
• Glassvin The Decanter: This decanter is beautifully designed, but was quite heavy when full. The narrow neck made decanting a bottle into the vessel trickier.

FAQs

Why should you decant wine? 

Whether you're drinking a natural wine or a conventional one, decanting is a way to unlock the best flavors in a glass of wine. Oxygen helps wine develop—this is the same principle that’s at work when wine ages. Decanting will bring forward the fruit characteristics in a wine, mellow out the alcohol flavor, and integrate the tannins. 

Should you decant white wine? 

In general, white wines do not need to be decanted. White wines are full of fresh fruit flavors and aromas, and decanting can diminish those flavors. There’s an exception to this rule—if your white wine tastes a little off, it can be beneficial to decant it. Using a wine decanter can help dissipate unwanted flavors and aromas like ethanol or sulfur.

How do you decant wine without a decanter?

You can still aerate wine without a decanter. Try pouring the wine into a pitcher, vase, or even a clean blender to give it some time to breathe. Or you could keep things simple: just remove the cork about an hour before you intend to serve—the wine will slowly open up in the bottle and continue to develop once poured.

What’s the best way to clean and care for a wine decanter? 

After use, simply fill the decanter with warm water and swish it around. Avoid using dish soap, as it can leave behind a thin residue and introduce unwanted flavors into your next bottle. If you use your decanter frequently it will require deep cleaning once in a while. Metal beads, a cleaning wand, or paper towels wrapped around a flexible silicone spatula can help remove residue from the bottom of a decanter. Whatever you do, resist the temptation to stick your hand down the neck of the decanter—the odds of getting your hand stuck and breaking the glass are quite high.

Are there different styles of decanters?

Yes! There are various decanter styles. These include standard/bell, cornett, swan, duck, and snail.

How do you store a decanter?

Seeing as they're made from fragile glass, we recommend storing a decanter in a cabinet away from pets, children, and wayward elbows. That being said, some decanters (like swan ones) are very large and can be hard to fit in cabinets. It's why our top decanters, from Made In and Riedel, are also compact.

Why We're the Experts

• Madeline Muzzi is a certified sommelier and freelance writer. She's been contributing to the site for several years.
• Madeline's also written our reviews of flatware sets and kitchen drawer organizers.
• For this review, we tested 13 wine decanters, evaluating how well they opened up wine, how easy they were to pour from, and more.