Need some Musar advice

Hello folks, I know there are a number of Musar gurus out there and I have a few questions. I will attend a Middle Eastern dinner in the near future and wish to take a bottle from my cellar. I have Musar rouge from 99, 00, 01, and 07. I have Musar blanc from 98 and 04. Either white or red would work with the menu for the night.

Which bottle would you suggest? And how far in advance should I decant it?

Thanks.

The whites are both a bit closed now but the '98 opens up with about 4-6h decanting. The red '99 is super and is amazingly open even now and only requires 4 or so hours to open up fully. But it is a very young wine and I would only open if you have plenty of it to cellar - this is one of the best Musars ever made so I'd certainly make sure you have some for the long term.

Perhaps the best to open now is the slightly weaker vintage, the red '00. Even a couple hours will do for it, though if you have the opportunity to do so, 4-6 would be better.

The whites are both a bit closed now but the '98 opens up with about 4-6h decanting. The red '99 is super and is amazingly open even now and only requires 4 or so hours to open up fully. But it is a very young wine and I would only open if you have plenty of it to cellar - this is one of the best Musars ever made so I'd certainly make sure you have some for the long term.

Perhaps the best to open now is the slightly weaker vintage, the red '00. Even a couple hours will do for it, though if you have the opportunity to do so, 4-6 would be better.

Thanks for the information, Otto. Question on decanting the '00: is that 4-6 hours in the decanter or decant and rebottle 4-6 hours before serving?

I'm not convinced that it matters. But do correct me if my reasoning is flawed: the act of pouring it is where most of the air exposure happens so effectively which ever way you do it, you already get the benefit from the first point you pour it into a decanter.

A “quick” (1 to 2 hours before the dinner party) “double or triple” decant (ending in the original rinsed 750 ml bottle) will not be sufficient? IMHO it’s always best to drink a wine when it is in a “restful state” (might not necessarily taste its best) rather than a “restless state”. (Mind you, for the most of you, you’re dealing with only 750 mls of wine or just a glass of wine and this transition from “restless” to “restful” might only take a few seconds or minutes).

When decanting there are two aspects to look at oxygen “pick-up” and “breathing”. The immediate “pick-up” of oxygen puts the wine in a “restless state”; the “breathing” returns the wine to a “restful state”. As pointed out by Otto the action of pouring is responsible for the “pick-up” (colder wine would “pick-up” more oxygen than warmer wine). “Breathing” is totally different and is governed by amount of oxygen dissolved in the wine, time of oxygen exposure, size of exposed surface area, volume, temperature and chemistry of the wine. Generally when it comes to exposed surface area, a larger surface area “breathes” more than a smaller exposed surface area, and a surface area at “rest” “breathes” less than a “disturbed” surface area. (The shape of the decanter (or head space) will determine exposed surface area). The dinner ritual itself (whether the wine is served from decanter or bottle, and lasts 1 to 2 hours maybe even a little longer) continues with this process.

Salute