Decanting

[sharc]

I am very much a novice when it comes to wine and have been reading in a few of the posts about the decanting process. I have a couple of questions (out of pure curiosity, I have yet to even buy a decanter for personal use).

I understand that a lot of the experienced members of this board decant their reds prior to drinking. Is this something you do across the board or are there certain types of reds where this is more effective in reaching a desired point? Will vintage or style dictate how long this process will take? If the wine is opened at the correct serving temp, what about after it has decanted? Do you sacrifice this for the process?

Lastly, I have never seen any restaurant decant their wines prior to serving it. I understand that time constraints would be the first reason to ignore this step. Is this something that serious wine buffs would ask for prior to dining or does it go largely ignored in these type of settings?

Thanks,
Chris