Cleaning decanters

[Jonjel]

I had friends for dinner over the weekend. One of them, albeit a nice chap is a bit up himself and thinks he knows about wine etc. (He asked where I had bought the beef and I told him Pets R Us but that is another story)

So, I decanted a cheap bottle of plonk and put it on the table. Wonderful wine J****L! (I did not like to tell him it was crap wine, just served in nice glass and at the right temperature)

However the decanter has water stains inside. It had them before I decanted, but they never showed!

Any tips then on getting the decanter into sparkling condition? Then I can find an even cheaper bottle of wine for him the next time.

[marchesarosa]

Ammonia or vinegar is good for cleaning glass but I think your stains inside the decanter may be due to damage to the glass surface from the contents - so impossible to remove.

Long ago I bought a couple of nice cut glass tumblers from a flea market thinking I could get rid of the whitish tide mark inside. But it was impossible so I have never been tempted since.

[Jonjel]

Thanks MR.

I may try it, but will probably ask the butler to do it.

Kettle descaler might be a first step, but it has some sentimental value so I need to be a bit cautious.

[marchesarosa]

Good idea! Kettle descaler is worth a try.

On the other hand, just keep it topped up with wine and you won't notice the marks.

[jean]

If the stains are from hard water, vinegar should do the trick, without damaging the glass. Try that first.