In the making of red wines, bits of grape seeds and grape solids are often intentionally left in the wine during fermentation and aging. Sediment will also naturally develop in undisturbed bottles of red wine that have been aged in a cellar or wine refrigerator. But, finding that sediment in your glass of wine can be quite unpleasant. And, the most likely place to find this sediment is in the final glass of wine poured from a bottle. This is when all those bits, that have been settled on the side or bottom of the bottle, find their way into your glass.

So, instead of savoring that last sip of your wine, you end up spitting it out. An unpleasant way to finish.  And that has happened to me more than once. But it doesn't have to happen.

There are several ways to avoid getting a mouth full of grape bits in your glass of wine.

The first way is to try to keep the solids in the bottle and not let them in to your glass. If the bottle has been standing still and upright for a couple of days, the solids will have naturally fallen to the bottom of the bottle. As long as you are careful to not stir them up while opening the bottle and are gently tipping the bottle while pouring, the sediment should stay in the bottom of the bottle. But why take the risk.

The most dependable way is to do your own filtering before serving. There are several inexpensive devices on the market for doing this. The best one is a combination filter/aerator funnel. You simply hold this funnel above your decanter (or any other suitable container) and pour the wine through.  It has a micro-fine filter built-in that traps all those undesirable particles while allowing all the wine to pass through. As the wine exits the funnel, it also gets aerated (exposed to air) which will usually help a young red wine. You'll then find all those undesirable particles trapped in the bottom of the funnel.  Not lurking in your wine glass.

While sediment is not harmful if consumed, it does significantly detract from a nice glass of wine.  So, be careful - simply filter and forget! Cheers