Best Wine Decanters: Riedel, Zalto, Schott Zwiesel

Spiegelau, owned by Riedel, makes the Style decanter in lead-free crystal in Germany. It holds 33 ounces, a full bottle with a little room to spare, and has a slender body and an angled spout that pours cleanly.

The shape is narrow, so it is better at separating wine from sediment and looking good on the table than at aerating. For a young red that needs a real opening, pour it in an hour ahead and give it a swirl or two.

Skip it if you mostly drink big young reds and want maximum air contact. The wide-based decanters further down do that job better.

The catch. A narrow body gives less air contact than a wide-bottomed decanter.

Le Chateau is the house brand of Upper Echelon Products, which sells it directly on Amazon. The decanter is hand-blown, lead-free crystal, sized for a 750 ml bottle, with a wide base for air contact and a slanted, cut mouth that pours without drips and is wide enough to get a hand or a brush into.

The listing calls it a decanter with a built-in aerator. In practice that means the wine runs down the inside of the angled mouth as you pour it in. It is a sound design, and the wide opening makes it easier to clean than most decanters in this price range.

Skip it if you want a name with a long history in glass. Le Chateau is a newer brand, and the maker's free-replacement guarantee applies only to decanters bought directly from Upper Echelon Products and registered with them.

The catch. The 'aerator' is the angled mouth, not a separate device; expect a good decanter, not a wine gadget.

Zwiesel 1872 is Schott Zwiesel's handmade line. The Pollux holds one liter and stands 9 inches tall and 9 inches wide, so a full bottle spreads out low across the base. You pour it by gripping the underside of the base, which feels odd once and natural after that, and the wine runs down the walls on the way in.

It is made in Germany in Tritan crystal, Zwiesel's lead-free glass of titanium and zirconium oxide, which the listing says resists breakage, chipping and scratching. Most important for a decanter, the maker rates it fully dishwasher safe and says it will not etch, cloud or discolor.

Skip it if you want a traditional silhouette. The low, wide shape is modern, and it takes up more shelf width than height.

The catch. The pour-from-the-base grip takes one practice run with water before you try it with a full bottle at the table.

Zalto's Axium is hand-blown in lead-free crystal and holds up to 1,450 ml, enough for a full bottle with generous room to move. It stands 8 inches tall on a 6.1 inch base, with a neck that fits in the hand for swirling. The Manufactory, the retail arm of Zalto's US importer, describes it as right for reds and fuller whites, giving the wine a measured amount of air.

Zalto recommends the dishwasher over hand washing for its glass, on a gentle cycle, because the twisting and polishing of hand drying is what breaks most thin crystal. For stubborn wine stains inside decanters, Zalto suggests hot water with baking soda, or uncooked rice swirled as a gentle scrub.

Skip it if you do not already own thin glasses. Its pleasure is in matching them, and it asks for the same care.

The catch. Thin crystal at this size is easy to crack against a tap or the edge of a sink.