Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Many of the reviewers here are claiming that the Vinturi works. Well, I was skeptical, yet I was curious enough to purchased one. I began by pouring an ounce or two of a red wine directly into the glass, not using the aerator, then tasting the wine. Then I'd pour more of the same wine through the Vinturi and taste again. In most cases I believed I could taste a difference between the non-aerated and aerated wine. For a week or two I was quite impressed with the Vinturi; yet deep inside I was wondering whether the power of suggestion was influencing my assessment. In order to objectively challenge the performance of the Vinturi, I performed a little experiment. I left the room and had my wife pour three glasses of red wine from the same bottle; two were poured without the aerator and one with the aerator. Once the bubbles from the aeration settled (30 seconds or so), my wife called me back into the room to perform the "blind tasting" to see if I could discern the wine which had been poured through the Vinturi. It turns out that the Vinturi really does work. I was able to pick which wine of the three was aerated. All skepticism has been removed as far as I'm concerned. I've recommended the Vinturi to several of my wine drinking friends and they likewise have confirmed the effectiveness of the Vinturi's aeration. There are two reasons why I don't give this product a five star rating. The first reason, as another reviewer has already noted, is that the wine must be carefully poured into the Vinturi at a specific rate. Pour too fast and the wine will overflow. Pour too slow and the Vinturi will run dry and won't aerate properly. It takes careful attention. Second, the Vinturi will continue to drip wine after each use. It does come with a handy little holder which keeps the wine from running onto the table, but then the little holder needs to be washed after each use. These concerns are small matters in the overall perspective. It really comes down to the tasting experience. If you enjoy tasting good red wines then these blemishes are small compromises to make.