In the wine world, much thought is given to the 'D' word -- decant.

Should I decant?

Does decanting make the wine taste better?

Is decanting right for every wine?

Does it look absurd to decant a low-budget wine?

The answers are perhaps, probably, no and no.

You don't have to engage in a Shakespearean soliloquy every time you open a bottle of wine. There are a few simple guidelines.

In Victorian Era England, all wine was served in decanters. After all, in those days, wines spent years maturing in subterranean cellars, collecting dust, mold and cobwebs in the process. It wasn't acceptable to place such messy-looking bottles on a genteel dinner table.

Besides, anything ready to drink at that time was old enough to develop a sediment and decanting was the means of separating the unsightly deposits in the bottle from the wine. The deposits are a natural part of the aging process and do not affect the taste of the wine. Removing them is more a matter of aesthetics. Properly decanted older wines will be bright rather than cloudy.

Removing sediment from a wine requires a decanter or carafe and a candle or flashlight. The bottle should be brought to a standing position several hours before uncorking to allow all solids to fall to the bottom.

Remove the foil capsule that covers the cork and wipe the bottle rim with a damp cloth. With as little jiggling of the bottle as possible, remove the cork. Hold the bottle so that the neck is in front of a light source in order to see when the sediment starts to flow and slowly pour the liquid into the carafe, being careful to stop pouring before any sediment escapes.

It is best to pour against the side of the carafe so that the wine trickles down gently. It should never splash.

Old wines are fragile and air is their greatest enemy. The aromas can fade quickly once the beverage is exposed to air so this procedure is best done moments before drinking the wine.

Removing sediment is the primary reason to decant wine but for contemporary wine-lovers, the decanter serves an entirely different purpose. Today we often drink wines before they are fully mature.

Sommeliers and wine experts have discovered that decanting young red wines helps to open the bouquet and smooth the texture. It is a good means of taming wines that are still rough and tannic and allows more complex aromas to develop. Exposure to oxygen has a positive effect on such wines.

Aerating young, "tough" wines is not universally accepted as the best way to soften them.

Emile Peynaud, pre-eminent French oenologist (now deceased), would only allow decanting when necessary to remove sediment. He argued that young wines could develop nicely in a properly shaped glass and that following the evolution of that development as it occurred slowly in the glass was an important part of appreciating the wine.

Other wine-drinkers prefer to let the wine "breathe" by removing the cork from the bottle some hours before drinking the contents.

Twenty years ago this was common practice but now most experts agree that the surface area of a bottle neck is so small relative to the quantity of liquid that very little breathing takes place.

Today's conventional wisdom is that the best way to tame big, fruity red wines is to give them a hefty dose of oxygen and that means decanting an hour or two before serving. To get the maximum benefit of this aeration, it helps to let the wine splash violently into the container.

To fully appreciate what effect oxygen has on a young and powerful red wine, try experimenting with a tasting of two bottles of the same wine.

Open and decant one of the bottles several hours before the tasting. Open the other bottle when the tasting begins. Pour each wine into identical glasses and notice the difference in aromas and also in taste.

Decanters need not be expensive. The most important requirement is that they be made from clear and unadorned glass.

The best will have a wide base that provides ample surface area for the wine to be in contact with air and a narrow neck to facilitate pouring. Riedel makes a classic one that sells for $39.95 at Sur La Table in the SouthSide Works (www.surlatable.com) and at Palate Partners, 2013 Penn Ave. in the Strip District.

All is not lost if you forget to decant your young red several hours before tasting.

For the price of a decanter you can purchase a new wine accessory called a Vinturi Essential Wine Aerator. It is a clear plastic funnel specially designed to draw air into the wine as it passes from bottle to glass. By simply holding the Vinturi over a wine glass and pouring the liquid through it, you can improve the bouquet, enhance the flavors and soften the tannins. You will find it at Palate Partners for $39.99. The improvements it brings to a young red wine will surprise you.

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Here are a few wines that will benefit from aeration

Rosenblum Cellars Heritage Clone Petite Sirah, PLCB #8365, $16.99
This full-bodied red is from the Central Coast region of California. Deep purple in hue, it is thick and chewy with aromas of plums and blackberries. This is a wine to be drunk with food. Grilled meats would be ideal.

Torres Tempranillo Coronas, PLCB #6726. $15.99.
Made from Spain's national grape, this wine is medium-bodied with ripe berries and spice aromas. I like to serve it with casseroles or stews.

Bonny Doon Heart of Darkness Madiran 2003, PLCB #19575, $9.99.
The madiran grape grows only in a small region of Southwestern France. It produces a dense and chewy wine which smells of black fruits, pipe tobacco and liquorice. This wine too is best with food. I suggest grilled meats or roasted game.

Greg Norman Estates Shiraz, PLCB #7273, $15.99.
This Australian shiraz produces a big mouthful of plum jam with cracked white pepper and spice. Try it with lamb or venison.