One of the most fun parts of this blog is what it now brings to my door. I mean, really, gadgets and gifts… who doesn’t love them?

This newest addition to my wine accoutrements is the Host Deluxe Aerator. I’ve got a quick one called the Vinturi Travel, and I love it. It’s got one decanting function, and it works.

Now, along comes a decanting device that gives me options. Honestly, if I carried this bag into any restaurant, unless there’s a Master Sommelier on board, people might think that I’m a freak. (I can hear some of my family and friends telling me that I am; but, to have strangers making that snap judgment just isn’t fair.)

The Host Adjustable Aerator & Pourer is an instant enhancer of any wine’s tannic structure, because it softens them instantly. This advantage releases flavors, so you can taste more of the wine and less of the tannins (that cotton in your moth feeling, if you don’t know what I’m talking about by “tannins,” a wine’s natural preservation system). As the executive director of PS I Love You, the advocacy group for Petite Sirah, I’ve yet to endorse anything – after 10 years of managing this group. I can tell you this… this is the best darned gadget for Petite Sirah that was ever invented. Imagine dialing up your preference?

The settings are from zero to six hours. Who among us – who knows the glory and the gory of excessive tannins – can’t appreciate a good aerator? In 10 years, can you imagine how much Petite I’ve tasted? Well, let’s just say a lot and leave it at that.

This is one traveling gadget, when I know I’m headed to enjoying red (wine, that is, especially Petite Sirah) I’ll be bringing with me.

Advantages:

• The acrylic strainer filters out any unwanted sediment.
• The flow meter regulates the pour for dependable aeration levels every time.
• With the stainless steel band and the seamless exterior design, this product is as functional as it is beautiful.
• You just have to pick your setting, pour your wine through the aerator, and then enjoy your decanted wine… No waiting for hours, when you don’t have hours to wait.
• We can regulate each pour for dependable aeration levels, every time we use it.
• This product is high quality, and has a stainless steel selection band.

Imagine the fun with one bottle of wine, trying this out.

1. Start with a really big, tannic wine, so leave the Pinot Noir and Gamay for another day.
2. To begin, set up seven (exactly shaped the same) glasses.
3. Next you’ll be pouring the wine into these glasses, in an exact amount as you can.
   • The first glass should have NO aeration. (You’ll need one glass with wine that’s NOT been decanted, so you can also taste the “real deal.”)
   • The next six glasses will have you pouring through the Host Adjustable Aerator & Pourer, using the dialed level (hour) of aeration for each pour.
   • Begin with the “one” setting, and do the same with each glass graduating to the next level, through all “six” settings.
4. Finally, taste each wine, starting with the softest wine, which will be the Number 6 dial.
   • Then, work your way backwards to the number one wine, finishing with the wine that wasn’t decanted at all.

With each taste, the flavors will become more masked as the tannins begin to take over… The last one (the glass with no aeration) will be big and bold.

This video shows you perfectly what this gadget is all about…