Baumatic BW28, User Manual

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Your Baumatic BW28 Wine Cooler
14
Oxidation – when wine has been opened and left for longer than a day, it
tends to lose its aroma and colour, giving an overall flat taste. The only
way to avoid this is to drink the wine on the same day it was opened or
use a vacuum device specially designed for wine bottles and drink it
shortly afterwards.
Ullage – this is loss of wine from the bottle by evaporation or leakage.
Signs of ullage include wine seeping around the cork, a protruding cork, or
a stained label. It can happen if the bottle was allowed to get too warm.
The wine may still be drinkable if the leakage was recent; however, please
be aware that if the wine cools down again, contracting, air can be sucked
back into the bottle to cause further deterioration.
Very Slight Effervescence in Still Wine – this isn’t really a fault but is a result
of slightly incomplete
malolactic fermentation from when the wine was bottled.
A good way to make this disappear is to let the wine
breathe, but if needs be, you can always use a bottle
vacuum device (such as Vacu-Vin). Five minutes or so with one of these
installed will make the effervescence vanish.
Sediment – this is normally not a problem at all. Both red and white wines can
throw a sediment after a number of months in a bottle. These are tartrate
crystals – totally harmless. These can actually be considered to be a good sign
in that they mean that the wine was not subjected to much (if any) filtering,
thus preserving the flavours and aromas better.
A good way to get round sediment (if it is a problem) is to stand the bottle
upright the day before opening so that the sediment can settle to the bottom
of the bottle.
You can also decant your wine. If you have a crystal decanter, this can
be especially appealing on the table.
Decanting will ‘open up’ the flavour of both young and old wines, but
younger wines in particular. To decant, pour the wine slowly and evenly into
your decanter.
To make the most of the bouquet and taste of your wine, never fill more
than half a glass at a time. It may also help if you have the appropriate shape
of glass for your wine. The size and shape of your glass’s bowl determine the
intensity and complexity of the bouquet. The stem should be long enough to
avoid hand contact with the bowl and should be tulip-shaped or tapered at the
top.