Wine decanter or water bong? You decide.

This dubious gadget was one of the many on offer at the Restaurant Expo this weekend. The Versovino is a hand-blown glass sphere that decants wine 100 ml at a time and retails for about $40. Why would you want such a thing? Well, say you pour a bottle into a decanter, let it breathe -- only to decide you feel more like a Capharina instead. Getting the wine back inside the bottle is such muss, such fuss!  Now what do you do?

I wonder if Ron Popeil has a wine cellar. Because, like Ronco's need for eggs that are beaten inside the shell, this problem doesn't exist. If you own wine that demands decanting, you are fortunate; and if you've taken the trouble to decant, you're going to drink. Because, Versovino or no, your only other option is to put it back in the cellar and hope it hangs tight until tomorrow.

Comments

[Jim M.]

You may be right that not everyone will appreciate a $40 item that decants a single glass of wine at a time. Not everyone would take the time to buy and savor a decent wine. Perhaps a Budweiser would do.

For people who love wine and do not usually consume the whole bottle at one sitting, this device might be of some use. Even a $6 bottle of wine can be improved by decanting.

[Dana Harris]

Hi, Jim. I think there's lots of people who would appreciate a $40 bottle of wine; maybe even as many as those who drink Budweiser. (Although I'm not one of them -- for Bud, that is.) I do love wine and I don't consume whole bottles in a single sitting. However, I do serve whole bottles if we're having a dinner party, which is usually when I decant. The Versovino makes some sense, I suppose, as a way to decant older bottles of wine (those w/ sediment) by the glass. But if I've chosen to open a bottle good enough to have age/sediment, there's no way I'm pouring only one glass. Not because I'm greedy (although I might be) but because once that bottle's opened, I'm not going to risk the quality loss that comes with 24 hours. As for younger wines, there can be value in decanting -- but younger wines are seeking the benefit of oxygen, which usually comes from "violent" pouring and surface exposure for, say, 15-30 minutes. VV isn't particularly violent and doesn't offer much surface exposure -- not that anyone would want to hold a VV'd bottle for 15 minutes. If you're looking for by-the-glass decanting of young wines, I think it makes a lot more sense to... pour the wine into a glass.

Having said all of that, the Versovino does look pretty cool. Which explains why I always asked my mom how come we couldn't order any of the products on TV.

[Jim M.]

Hi, Dana. I'm a little confused about your last sentence. If you mean that the device looks cool, but doesn't work, then you are making a rash judgement. You have not tried it. I'm not saying everyone needs this device, but that if you are a wine lover, then try it before you dismiss it. I have tried it and I love it.

[Dana]

Hi, Jim. I haven't tried it, for all the reasons I rattled on about. And while you can argue that my judgment is unfair, I don't want to spend $45 on what appears, to me, to be the wine-world equivalent of Ronco's Inside-The-Shell Electric Egg Scrambler. (still available through Amazon for $24.95!) However, I'd love to hear what wines you've used with the Versovino and why you love the product.

[Steve]

Interesting post...!