Experts will tell you that there are three different serving temperatures for wines.
Room Temperature refers to what room temperatures were in old Europe:60-65°F
Cellar Temperatures refers to cellars used before refrigeration:50-55° F
Cold or Iced Temperatures are:40-45° F
Our sense of smell is uncompromisingly tied to our sense of taste. That is why the temperature of the wine at the time of consumption is crucial. Really? Yes really!!
In the case of red wine…we want to serve it at room temperature. The purpose of serving red wine at room temperature is to warm the wine to the point where its aromatic elements begin to vaporize, tantalizing our sense of smell thus influencing our sense of taste.
As the wine’s temperature reaches 60° F, the aromas and bouquets are increasingly released as the wine temperature rises. However, when wine reaches 68° F, the evaporating alcohol in the wine begins to dominate. At this point the bouquet of the wine becomes less attractive.
Our dining rooms routinely are over 68° F, so some of us carefully cool red wine slightly, especially the full-bodied red wines like the Bordeauxs , Burgundies and some full-bodied Cabs. Be careful though… red wine is best at 65° F, at that temperature it will be smooth, round and enjoyable but the same red wine at 50° F will become harsh and astringent.
Everything depends on your own taste preferences and types of red wines, but my recommendations for red wine temperature at the time of consumptions are:
Beaujolais, Pinot Noir, Barbera, Light Chianti, Merlot enjoy at: 50-60° F
Shiraz and most other Red Wines at: 60-62° F
Cabernet, Merlot, Zinfandel at: 63-65° F
Never serve red wine over 65° F …you will be disappointed!!!
White wines should be served cold. As Americans we have an obsession with cold beverages. Let me caution you… white wine served below 40° F severely limits the aromas and bouquet and may actually anesthetize rather than stimulate your taste buds.
Over-chilling white wines will mask some less-than-perfect characteristics. That is why many restaurants serve their generic white wines ice-cold. A lower quality white wine with coarse aromas and unpleasant sweet finish will come across as acceptable if served ice cold. So you will get the sensation of a cold refreshing liquid… but little else.
Most white wines should be served no colder than 48° F. More complex white wines should be served no colder than 54° F…the warmer temperature will make the wine evolve and make the taste impressions on your palate pronounced.
Again, everything depends on your own taste preferences and types of white wines, but my recommendations for white wine temperature at the time of consumptions are:
Light Chardonnay, Riesling, Soave, Sauvignon Blanc are great at: 48-53° F
Viognier, White Burgundy, Full-bodied Chardonnay, Semillion at: 54-58°F
Sparkling Wines and Champagnes should be served cold : 40-45°F. Remember the not below 40° F Rule applies to Sparkling Wines and Champagnes too… serve it cold but not ice-cold.
It takes at least one hour in the refrigerator and 20-30minutes in a bucket-of-ice and water to chill Champagne down from room temperature. If you are caught in a “warm” Champagne emergency, fill an ice bucket one-third with ice and the rest with cold water. This will speed the chilling process to a mere ten minutes.
Dessert Wines should be served cold but remember, over-chilling will kill the flavor and complexities of these high sugar content wines. I would recommend serving desert wines at these temperatures:
Sauternes, Beerenauslese are fantastic at: 51-61° F
Eiswein, Port, Madeira and Sherry a little warmer at: 62-65° F
Enjoying wine is just like so many other activities… the more knowledge you have about the activity the more enjoyable it is. I hope these little recommendations will add to your enjoyment of drinking wines.
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