What temperature do I serve Wine at ....
Serving temperature for wines;
Tradition has it that white wines are chilled and red wines are served at room temperature is a useful starting point, although not nearly detailed enough. There is a degree of personal preferance involved, but the temperature at which your wine is served is important, and it is worth spending a few moments thinking about it, as it will greatly influance your enjoyment.
A wine served a little too cold or a little too warm can lose an awful lot of character, particularly with respect to aroma.
Most domestic refrigerators
maintain their internal environment at about 4ºC, which is far too cold for
most white wines. Champagne and dry white wines of quality are best served at a
temperature between 8ºC and 10ºC.
Inexpensive white wines, cheaper sparkling wines and sweet white wines are best a little colder, perhaps 4ºC to 8ºC, so two hours or so should bring these bottles down to a reasonable temperature.
The ideal serving temperature for many fine red wines is 14ºC to 18ºC. Some reds, unless stored somewhere cool, will benefit from half an hour in the refrigerator. This is particularly the case for Beaujolais and young Burgundy, as well as Pinot Noir from the New World. Good claret, Rhônes and other reds from warmer climes are generally fine at 16 - 18ºC.
When bringing the wine to
the correct temperature, its obviously important not to damage the wine. Gentle
cooling in the fridge is best, and cooling in a bucket of water and ice is also
safe, and more rapid. It will have the effect of bringing the wine down to 0ºC,
which is far too cold to appreciate the wine, so you will need to remove the
bottle before it gets this far.
If trying to warm a bottle which is too cold, there
is a more significant risk of damaging the wine. Warm the wine gently,
preferably by planning ahead and bringing the wine from its cool storage area,
be it wine cellar or fridge, several hours in advance.
Many are tempted to try and accelerate the process by placing the wine near radiators or other sources of heat. This is a recipe for likely disaster, with the end result quite possibly a stewed, soupy, over-heated wine, especially left their too long as the mind is occupied elsewhere.
If in doubt, always err on the side of caution and serve wine cooler. A wine served in the way will soon warm up in the glass, probably releasing a sequence of pleasing aromas as it does so.
For accuracy, why not make it easier and buy a bottle collar, or one of our wine thermometers or wine kits.
|
Wine Type |
Celsius |
Fahrenheit |
|
Red Wines; |
10-18° |
50-65° |
|
Bordeaux, Shiraz |
18° |
64° |
|
Red Burgundy, Cabernet |
63° |
17° |
|
Rioja, Pinot Noir |
61° |
16° |
|
Chianti, Zinfandel |
59° |
15° |
|
Beaujolais, Rosé |
54º |
12º |
|
|
|
|
|
Champagne |
7° |
45° |
|
Sparkling Wines; |
6-11° |
42-52° |
|
|
|
|
|
Fortified Wines; |
14-20° |
55-68 ° |
|
Vintage Port |
19° |
66° |
|
Tawny/NV Port, Madeira |
14° |
57° |
|
|
|
|
|
White Wines; |
7-10° |
45-50° |
|
Viognier, Sauternes |
11° |
52° |
|
Chardonnay |
9° |
48° |
|
Riesling |
8° |
47° |
|
Ice Wines |
6° |
43° |
|
Asti Spumanti |
5° |
41° |
