Clear, uncut tulip-shaped glasses are ideal for tasting and drinking. They capture all the aromas of the wine and funnel them straight to your nostrils.

Decanting releases and maximises aromas and flavours in young wines - both red and a few white wines. Generally, the heavier and denser the wine (the wines colour should help you judge this), the longer it will need to breathe. Crisp dry whites should be poured straight from the bottle, while rich, oaky whites will become more complex if they are allowed to breathe for 15 minutes or so. If a wine is already mature, its scent accessible and obvious, let it breathe for just a short time.

The second reason to decant is when a wine has sediment - the only way of serving the wine without stirring it up. Sediment - whether it lies at the bottom of the bottle or attaches itself to the cork as crystals - is a good sign of natural-ness and fullness. To decant wines with floating sediment you need to be able to see when the wine ceases to be clear - use a torch pointing upwards or a candle. Pour in one smooth flow until you see the dark swirl of sediment reach the bottle-neck. Then stop.

Some tips for cooling or warming your wines:
Ice and water is better than just ice - a 'chiller jacket' will do the job in 5 minutes. To take the chill off red wine in a hurry, place the corked bottle briefly in warm water.