Who can give me the rundown on chilling wine?

[Deleted]

I googled the snot out of this and ended up with 836364 varying opinions and in depth analyzations.

All I need to know is do the following need to be chilled or not?

I have 2 kinds sweet red, 2 kinds sweet white and 2 kinds semi-sweet white.

Explain it to me, Simpleton style please.

(I do drink a lot of wine actually, but I like all of mine cold, but we're having a wine tasting for fun Saturday night, so I feel I better do this right..lol).

[johnohfs]

My rule of thumb is whites or blushes go in the fridge or in ice and can be taken out about an hour before guests arrive. The reds can be taken out 3-4 hours before guests arrive. The reds get served at around 58 deg F, if that helps.

I'm no wine pro, but that's what I recall from a wine course a while back.

[natablue]

I say yes to all of the above - chill them. I just throw them in the fridge. I'm not fancy.

[Deleted]

Thanks that was helpful!

All I needed was the basics, we're usually all high class with the Summer Shandy around here so it's not like anyone is going to care!

[kaylie]

Chill them all - almost all whites are meant to be served chilled. Sweet reds and blushes should also be served chilled. Same as pp - I throw them in the fridge.

[april37]

I chill all white wines and blushes (just put it in the fridge) and take them out a little bit before serving. I do not chill red wine. 98% of the wine DH I I drink is red and we never chill it.

[minniebee]

This is what was suggested to me at a winery a few years back:

Whites should be stored in a fridge (at 40-45 degrees, which is the range most people keep their fridges at), and taken out 20 minutes before being served.

Reds should be stored in slightly warmer conditions than whites (50-55 degrees). If you don't have a wine fridge or cool spot in your house that fits those conditions, you can store reds at room temperature and put them in the fridge 20 minutes before serving. If reds are not stored in ideal conditions (the 50-55 degrees) you should drink them within 1-2 years of buying them since they become "unbalanced" if kept at too high of a temperature. I don't know exactly what an unbalanced wine tastes like, but apparently reds last much longer if stored at the ideal temperature.

[simpsongal]

Agree w/ above. Is there anything worse than going to a nice restaurant and getting a glass of red wine that's 70+ degrees Fahrenheit? Blech.

[boiler717]

Jun 18, 2012 14:24:20 GMT -5 minniebee said:

This is what was suggested to me at a winery a few years back:

Whites should be stored in a fridge (at 40-45 degrees, which is the range most people keep their fridges at), and taken out 20 minutes before being served.

Reds should be stored in slightly warmer conditions than whites (50-55 degrees). If you don't have a wine fridge or cool spot in your house that fits those conditions, you can store reds at room temperature and put them in the fridge 20 minutes before serving. If reds are not stored in ideal conditions (the 50-55 degrees) you should drink them within 1-2 years of buying them since they become "unbalanced" if kept at too high of a temperature. I don't know exactly what an unbalanced wine tastes like, but apparently reds last much longer if stored at the ideal temperature.

This! Except sometimes I drink the white right away

[meggers]

This is what I've always followed too!

Jun 18, 2012 14:24:20 GMT -5 minniebee said:

This is what was suggested to me at a winery a few years back:

Whites should be stored in a fridge (at 40-45 degrees, which is the range most people keep their fridges at), and taken out 20 minutes before being served.

Reds should be stored in slightly warmer conditions than whites (50-55 degrees). If you don't have a wine fridge or cool spot in your house that fits those conditions, you can store reds at room temperature and put them in the fridge 20 minutes before serving. If reds are not stored in ideal conditions (the 50-55 degrees) you should drink them within 1-2 years of buying them since they become "unbalanced" if kept at too high of a temperature. I don't know exactly what an unbalanced wine tastes like, but apparently reds last much longer if stored at the ideal temperature.

[thewop]

Wait...so are people saying I need to chill all red wines or just sweet reds? I would never drink a chilled cabernet or merlot.

[Deleted]

Jun 18, 2012 18:31:27 GMT -5 thewop said:

Wait...so are people saying I need to chill all red wines or just sweet reds? I would never drink a chilled cabernet or merlot.

I think just the sweets. I'm pretty sure posters were just responding to what I posted specifically. I don't like chilled merlot either and I like 99% of my wine cold.

[kaylie]

Jun 18, 2012 18:47:39 GMT -5 @justdairy said:

Jun 18, 2012 18:31:27 GMT -5 thewop said:

Wait...so are people saying I need to chill all red wines or just sweet reds? I would never drink a chilled cabernet or merlot.

I think just the sweets. I'm pretty sure posters were just responding to what I posted specifically. I don't like chilled merlot either and I like 99% of my wine cold.

Yes, just the sweets. Chilled merlot or cab would be pretty gross.

[boiler717]

No even dry reds you should serve slightly below room temperature. You stick them in the fridge for 20 min to bring it down to 60-65 degrees.

[emjacobs]

I used to serve for a high end wedding venue in college.

All of the information above is accurate. All reds should be slightly chilled and all glasses should be properly prepared. All of our wine glasses were chilled according to the wine that was to be served (white, red , or champagne). There is nothing worse than getting a warm glass with chilled wine, there's a spot of strangeness in the temp.

[peach]

I think it boils down to - reds in the fridge for 20 minutes, whites sit out of the fridge to warm for 20 minutes.