The Agatha decanter from JA Campbell is part of the contemporary ‘Appetite’ collection.

The decanter is pure crystal and it has an elegant hallmarked sterling silver collar which is handmade in our Brentwood workshop. A replacement crystal service is available should an accident happen.

Why decant wine? Today most wine are routinely filtered and fined to a reasonable high clarity whilst in yesteryear this not quite the case. This led to the development of the decanter as we know it today thereby removing the unsightly sediment before it reaches the table. However even a modern young red wine will benefit tremendously for being decanted as it alters the wine, smoothing its slightly tannic structure and allowing the more complex aromas to be released.

For details of how to decant wine please see my Silver Decanters section on the home page. Any of the silver decanters on this website can be engraved, either on the silver collar or on the crystal body. This allows you to personalize the gift and mark the occasion. They are suitable for many occasions, a wedding present or a birthday, a corporate gift or for an award ceremony, or simply to spoil yourself!

All of the decanter tops in the JA Campbell range are made by the ‘spinning’ method although each model is different in size and shape. This sheet is made for us by Cookson Precious Metal and starts life as 93% of pure silver ingot mixed with 6.5%of pure copper and melted in a continuous casting machine producing a billet about 10” wide and 1” thick. This is cut into manageable lengths and rolled to increase the width to 1 metre and the length to produce the final thickness required. They are then cut into 1 metre by 0.5 stock sizes. Next they are packed together (about 20 sheets) into thick steel boxes with a thin dusting of talcum powder between each sheet to prevent them sticking together. Several of these boxes are then packed into a furnace and cooked for around 12 hours then allowed to cool. This process softens (anneals) the sheets which through the rolling process have become very hard. The sheets are then removed from the boxes, cleaned and plastic coated. 

Spinning is an ancient method that is still suitable today for the making of round hollow objects from sheet material in relatively small quantities. It involves taking a disc of sheet material, in this case silver, and coaxing it (while it spins rapidly) over a preformed chuck or former, screwed on to a spinning lathe and using a polished steel ‘burnisher’ with a long wooden handle which is held against the body and under the arm of the spinner/silversmith to provide push. All Campbell decanter tops are ‘spun’ in 2 parts and lapped together again on a lathe. The top component being thicker than the bottom to avoid accidental damage which could occur from the stopper.

At this stage in the making the tops are 1st stage polished to remove any spinning lines. They are then punched with the makers mark, JAC in a triangle, which is the registered mark of JA Campbell and the initials of John Campbell. The item is then sent to the London Assay Office for testing of each and every component. Only if all the components prove to be better than 92.5% are the remaining hallmarks punched into the surface while being supported on a steel stake. The English hallmarking system is one of the oldest and best forms of consumer protection and dates back to the 1400s.

The item is then returned to the silversmith’s workshop where it is polished using 4 grades of compound to remove all the spinning lines, file marks, blemishes and scrape marks caused by the Assay Office tests.

The decanter tops are then ultrasonically cleaned, punched with the JA Campbell name mark and fitted on to the appropriate decanter using plaster of Paris.

Finally they are packed into fitted presentation boxes for dispatch.

 All JA Campbell decanters will enhance the experience of drinking wine or spirits. The Agatha decanter is suitable for red, white or rose wine.

The decanter comes in a satin lined presentation box and can be gift wrapped if required.

Be assured that all JA Campbell products are made up to a standard and not down to a price.

‘To delight a customer’ is something Designer John Campbell aims to do with every item that leaves his workshop.