Whilst there are a few rules to follow there are as many exceptions as there are rules. Firstly: is it a young wine that would otherwise benefit from ageing? Young wines can be closed and very tight - allowing them to breathe allows them to come out of their shell. Decanting the wine is best, but if you don't have a decanter? Well open the bottle an hour or so before intended consumption. Pour about 2 cm out so that the level of the wine is sitting in the shoulder of the bottle. This gives you a greater surface area of wine to air. Air will open up the wine and allow it to release all the constituent parts that make up aroma and flavour. Try the 2 cm you poured out. When you try the wine that has been allowed to breathe later on in you should notice some changes in the way it tastes.
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