Decanters... pretentious?

[justgeton]

What's your thoughts?

I have a lovely little crystal one I bought for peanuts on an antique market. I've never used it but am tempted to, just for over Christmas

Is that a bit OTT?

@FlibbertyGiblets it's a special tray for holder the decanter that fits on top of piano. Apparently.

To me it's just something else that's awkward to dust.

Ooh that sounds wonderfully poncey!

If you don’t use it at Christmas you never will. Use and enjoy it!
I have one that belonged to my grandparents, might actually put some wine in it this year. It’s a precious thing.

Decanter always remind me of the Dallas/Dynasty era where they were always pouring scotch! I've always wanted one!

I wouldn’t recommend storing your drinks in clear glass decanters. The sunlight and lack of an airtight seal makes them deteriorate. But I would use a decanter for something I plan to drink within a few days.

Maybe a little, but in a fun way! Definitely ok for Christmas day.

Definitely use it! But if it’s clear glass and not completely air tight might be best to use for something quite strong like brandy or whiskey, rather than port or sherry.
I think they look beautiful and have been on the lookout for a good one for a while for my sloe gin. Find a lovely mirrored tray and some little cut glass glasses to complete the look.
If using for sherry or port I would decant back into the bottle for storage between uses, so that the drink doesn’t spoil (depending on how much you get through obviously!)

We use them! But not for wine, it's not in there long enough 😂 but we do use them for whisky, brandy, port and Sherry. Apart from one which was a wedding present the others all came from our respective grandparents.

I bought some years ago when I got into making damson gin. I loved them, so pretty. I got bored of the gin and haven't used them since.

It’s not pretentious at all. Use it and enjoy it. Don’t be afraid to enjoy things.

I genuinely thought "why is she putting peanuts in a decanter?!"

I've not got one but I'd love one. I think they look great at dinner parties. Especially red wine. I just don't have the space for more stuff

A lady I used to work with taught me never to keep anything for best. Use the special things everyday and treat yourself! It makes me much happier to get use out of them instead of them being stashed in a cupboard 99% of the time.

Whiskey goes in one and we have karaffes (sp?) for wine. Life is the time to be over the top.

Never make decisions based on fear about what other people might think.

I love decanters! I've just bought a mini fridge for the living room and have set up a bar in the cupboard

I have 2 decanters on the go - one with home made sloe gin and one with port

DH will occasionally decant better wine. He once came into the living room to show me the bottle and poured the last few drops into my glass. I thought he’d knocked it all back in the kitchen while cooking dinner until he explained he’d decanted it.

It’s rare for modern wines to need decanting, it was really just for vintage wines, to get rid of the “lees” at the bottom of the bottle, and to let the wine breathe before drinking.

But a pretty decanter of red wine would look lovely at your Christmas dinner table. And why not get some use out of it?
Just don’t decant the bottle for longer than an hour or so before serving - let it air, but not completely oxidise and spoil.

I use them, I think cut glass ones help add a bit of sparkle in candlelight, they feel decadent and indulgent and quite frankly, after such this shitty year anything that brightens the mood is lovely. Bring on the poncey or wanky

I think decanters can look nice, if a little Upstairs Downstairs. They can be a bugger to clean too so a stout bottle brush is in order. From a practical point of view, they are most useful for aged red wines and port that need to be poured off the sediment at the bottom of the bottle.

I liked the idea upthread of filling them with peanuts. M&Ms or Skittles would look appealing too, especially with a matching shallow dish for the same purpose.

This is the only one I have, just ordinary glass with a lightweight stopper. I must have bought it in a charity shop years ago.