Carafes

The first question is what the carafe is for. For water on the table you want a straight shape with a narrow base, which takes up little room and fits easily in the fridge door; the Bacchus sizes from 0.25 to 1 litre are the standard there. For house wine by the quarter or half litre, take the same shape in a smaller size, ideally with a line marking where the measure sits. For wine that needs to breathe, choose a wide, flat base instead, because the amount of wine touching air decides how quickly it opens up.

Then look at the neck and the stopper. A carafe without a stopper is meant for use within an hour or two, while a carafe with a ground or airtight stopper keeps spirits good for weeks and stops the aroma seeping into the sideboard. The whisky models of 70 to 96 cl fall into that group. Finally, look at the weight: cut crystal is heavier and better looking, but a light hospitality carafe can be poured full with one hand, and that counts when you are serving a table of ten.

Do not fill a water carafe right up, or you will pour over the rim for certain. About two thirds is the safe limit. Pour in one flowing movement and turn the carafe back slightly at the end, so the last drop follows instead of running down the outside. With a spout that happens by itself; with a straight neck you have to learn it.

Decant wine slowly and along the wall if the bottle has sediment, and with a splashing stream when you want to open up a young, closed wine. Half an hour in the carafe does more for a robust red than an hour of swirling in the glass. Whisky from a carafe is poured neat or over a large ice cube in a low glass, as in an old fashioned. For a large carafe with fruit and wine, you will find the ratio under sangria.

A carafe is harder to keep clean than a glass, simply because you cannot get a cloth inside it. Rinse it with lukewarm water straight after use, because dried wine sticks to the glass and leaves a brown film. If it is already there, fill the carafe with warm water, a dash of vinegar and a handful of rice grains, and swirl gently until the film comes loose.

Drying is the real problem. A carafe put away upright holds moisture and starts to smell musty, which ruins the next wine immediately. Stand it upside down on a drying rack, or lay it at an angle with the opening down until it is completely dry. Only close a stoppered carafe once you are sure there is no moisture left inside, and keep cut crystal out of the dishwasher if the stopper is cork or metal.

If you want a carafe built specifically to aerate wine, look at the decanters, where the wide models are. For the heavy stoppered models for the sideboard, go to the whiskey carafe. If you are after a jug with a handle for water or juice on the table, those sit under water jugs. What goes with it is one click away: the wine glasses for the matching bowls and the wine stoppers to close an opened bottle airtight. If you are not sure yet which size you need, the questions below will help you on your way.