The temperature of the wine

Heat is worse for wine than cold, a wine that is colder than normal can be allowed to warm with the environment, however a wine that is too hot is very difficult to cool without spoiling it.

White wine is generally served colder than red wine, however not all white wine is served chilled and not all red wine is served at room temperature. Each type of wine has its optimum service temperature.

In the past, the wine was kept in the cellar, where it remained cold. When it was taken out for consumption, it had to remain in the dining room to temper it and thus be able to enjoy its bouquet or aroma that would not otherwise be appreciated. This is the meaning of serving wine at room temperature, storing wine in rooms where the temperature is too high can be detrimental to the wine.

A very common mistake is also to believe that white wines must be served very cold. White wine is served cold in order to alleviate excessive acidity, however the heat in white wines reveals all its youth and fruitiness both on the nose and on the palate.

Therefore, in a white wine it is a matter of seeking the best expression through the acidity-aroma relationship that will be achieved by not cooling the wine too much. The ideal would be to consume white wine at the temperature found in the cellar, without suffering variations.

Never store wine in the fridge or refrigerator. Store white wine in a cool cellar, refrigerated cabinet or simply in a cool place. When you are going to serve it, use an ice cube tray with water to cool it down. You can also use the refrigerator for the service, but it will take much longer than the ice tray to achieve the same effect. Going from 20ºC to 8ºC in an ice tray can take about 15 min. While in the refrigerator 2 hours. Never use the freezer to chill wine.

In red wines, once the wine has been chosen from the cellar or refrigerated cabinet, the tempering process can last a couple of hours. Once tempered, a special insulating container for wines can be used if the ambient temperature is too high. Never put a bottle of wine near a heat source.

Outdoors, the service and temperature of the wine acquire greater attention since the cold-heat changes can be considerable. Preserve any wine from the sun’s rays and heat and keep it in the shade and in the coolest places. Use refrigerated containers or ice cube trays to chill the whites.