Whiskey decanters and decanting

[Stump89]

I was going through some junk in my basement and stumbled upon this old Jack Daniels belle of Lincoln decanter from the late 70s.  Not that it's exceptionally rare or anything, but I think it's a cool piece. Does anyone else have a collection of decanters? 

As a side question, do you folks use decanters for your whiskeys?  Are there the same benefits for it as decanting wine?

[shlomo]

decanting whisky will allow for the alcohol to evaporate first leaving you with a lower proof whisky. It makes it milder and gentler for sure, but after a certain amount of time, the whisky will lose its character. I would avoid decanting whisky into big decanters with a large surface area of the liquid exposed to air. 

Of course, if you plan on drinking the entire bottle of whisky relatively quickly, then little to no change will be noticeable.

[BrightonCorgi]

I have wine decanters from the early 19th century I use for port.  Also have a silver wine funnel from late 18th century I use for pouring wine into said decanters.  Here's a picture of one of the decanters

 

[Stump89]

5 hours ago, BrightonCorgi said:

I have wine decanters from the early 19th century I use for port.  Also have a silver wine funnel from late 18th century I use for pouring wine into said decanters.  Here's a picture of one of the decanters

 

Wow, very cool!

[earthson]

Have a beautiful Waterford crystal decanter, but I go through whiskey so slowly, the lead leachate becomes a concern.  I have left whiskey in it for months, and it did appear to grow sweeter, perhaps from the lead (and it being a wheated bourbon - Weller).

It looks beautiful in candlelight!

[BrightonCorgi]

22 hours ago, FatherOfPugs said:

For wine, I use the Vinturi, it aerates well and does the job of a decanter in no time. 

They do aerate wine, but is not a substitute for wine in a decanter.  Somethings, only a decanter and time can do.  

[ayepatz]

Whisky doesn’t age once it leaves the barrel. However it does evaporate pretty quickly if you don’t have a good seal. Something to bear in mind when buying decanters.

Decanters are cool, and sometimes they can be much more aesthetically appealing than the original bottle. 

I have two whisky decanters at home, one Edinburgh Crystal, one Stuart Strathearn. Both have a decent seal, but nowhere near as good as the cork seal in the original bottle.

They really only get used if I know I’m going to work through a bottle fairly quickly.

So Christmas is peak-time for decanters in our house. Also, I work abroad a lot, so if I have a few weeks at home, I’ll stick a nice bottle of something in a decanter and work through it.