Because you tend to drink white wines at a younger age, the decanting benefits are not as apparent with white wine as they are with red wine. One of the benefits of decanting older wines is to remove some of the sediment that has settled in the bottle; wines consumed at an earlier age do not have the sediment build up. There are some white wines that are meant to age though and decanting those particular white wines would be beneficial.
The reason you do not get much of a benefit from letting white wine breath is the fact that there are little tannins in white wine. Tannins react with oxygen in the air and it changes the chemical structure of the tannins.
In terms of reds, you actually get more benefit from letting a younger wine breath due to the fact that younger wines have more tannins and it helps to smooth them out. It's a bit of a misnomer that you need to let an old wine "breath", although decanting is a good idea because of sediment.
In terms of reds, you actually get more benefit from letting a younger wine breath due to the fact that younger wines have more tannins and it helps to smooth them out. It's a bit of a misnomer that you need to let an old wine "breath", although decanting is a good idea because of sediment.