What Is The Best Temperature To Store Red Wine

Optimal Wine Storage Conditions

So youve got several bottles of wine to put in your bar. But you need to know that there are several enemies that can spoil your wine, just keep these in mind:

• heat
• high humidity
• shaking.

We are sure that youve heard about all of the above before, but it is always important to bring up main hazards again to freshen up the memory and maybe find out about some new points. Have you heard about shaking before? We will cover this one further so keep on reading.

Now, we will cover some wine storage basics that are very handy and will save your time, wine, and party.

At What Temperature Is White Wine Served

After uncorking the wine, you have two options. First, you can place the bottle into an ice bucket so that it remains crisp and fresh, or you can leave it open on the table. In this way, as the temperature rises, the aromatics and flavors of the wine change, unlocking extra flavors and a more complex structure.

To ensure that your white and rosé wine stays cool during serving, use an ice bucket, as previously mentioned. The bucket should be filled three-quarters full with equal quantities of ice and water so that iced water surrounds the bottle. Then, the water can transfer the heat from the bottle to melt the ice. Air acts as an insulator, and the bottle chills. That being said, be careful and do not over-chill the wine. Otherwise, the tastes become thin, almost empty, and muddled.

The Goldilocks Effect: Optimal Wine Serving Temperatures

Different styles of wine have different requirements. Heres a list of some of our favourites :

Full-bodied red wines tend to taste best at temperatures close to room temperature but remember that room temperature isnt necessarily the same thing as the ambient temperature of the actual room youre in when you serve the wine. So, if you can, chill them to the temperatures above.

White wine is usually served cold to keep it at optimal temperature. Again, its worth checking the exact requirements before you drink from your chosen bottle. Heres a handy yardstick from the good folk at Wine Folly:

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Should Riesling Be Chilled

Cooler temperatures bring out the acidity and tannic qualities of a wine. A sweeter wine like a Riesling doesnt need any help bringing out tart taste. A warm bottle of Riesling needs a little bit of hibernation time in a refrigerator until it falls to about 50° F. Dont let your Riesling sleep for too long, though. Most refrigerators will take your wine down to about 35° F – far too cold. The acidity and overall sweetness will be tempered enough at 50° F, allowing for a much more pleasant experience. So, should Riesling be chilled? Absolutely!

Red Storage Temperature Cheat Sheet

Just as there is an optimum temp to store red wine, there is also an ideal setting for different body types of red wine. This might sound complicated, but Wine Racks America is here to make it simple. To help you determine the right red wine storage temperature, our experts put together the following table:

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The Do’s And Don’ts Of Storing Wine

If you have a temperature and humidity-controlled wine fridge, cellaring your wine can be easy. All you need to do is keep the temperature of the fridge somewhere in the low to mid 50s. This applies to all varietals of white or red wine.

But a wine fridge isnt the only way to cellar wine if you have the right spaces to keep wines in your home. You can use a closet or storage space centrally located within your home, or a basement that is well insulated . The idea behind this is making sure the wines do not experience temperature swings, which can end up pushing the corks in and out of the bottle and ruin the wine in the process.

Whether or not you stock up on Paso Robles Wine on your next trip to or order wines to be shipped be sure to follow these six rules.

Six Pro Tips to Storing Your Wine

b. Temperature Variation The temperature of your cellar needs to be as constant as possible. Changes of a few degrees over a couple of months is not problematic, but daily changes of 5-8° F or more can ruin your wine relatively quickly.

Do You Really Need A Wine Fridge

Before deciding whether you should have a wine fridge, think about your wine consumption habits. In addition, consider if you are a wine collector, too. For example, do you see yourself buying wine for years? How many wine bottles do you buy every year? And do you really want to put that extra effort into keeping your wine at the best possible serving temperature? Do consider if you have space for a wine fridge , as well, or if you could store your wine somewhere else, such as in a cool cellar.

If your main objective is to store wine to maintain correct wine temperatures, obtaining a wine fridge with separate temperature zones may not be worth the investment. Besides, a wine fridge is an expensive appliance since it is new technology. So, if you are not sure you are going to take 100% advantage of it, you are better off without one.

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Other Wine Storage Considerations

Odors and Chemical: Cork is a porous material and not only lets air into the bottle, but can also let in odors. Note to self, dont store your prized bottle of sauvignon next to sack of garlic cloves or in cabinets where you store your bleach or other cleaning chemicals. Years down the road, when you finally sit down to an amazing dinner with friends, youll be pretty upset if you open your treasured bottle of cab and experience subtle onion notes with a hint of Windex.

Argh I Dont Have A Cellar Now What

If you dont have a proper cellar you have a few options:

Start drinking

This might just be the perfect excuse to start drinking through your cellar. In the future, you can simply change your buying habits for short term wine consumption. We think you can get away with about a year of aging as long as your storage area never exceeds 80°F .

Store your wines professionally

It will cost you about $3.50 per case per month. Whats cool about this option is that pro cellars have great perks including insuring your wine, built-in potential buyers and tools to manage your wine collection. For example, we were particularly impressed with the concept of phenol 55.

Get a wine cooler

A decent wine cooler thats designed for aging will actually be a little loud because it needs a condenser and a fan. While thermoelectric units are great for short term , they fluctuate too much in temperature for long-term storage.

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Other Wine Storage Tips

Most wines should be stored on their sides. “At home, you want to keep your cork moist, because you don’t want air seeping in,” says Phillips. “Once the cork dries out, it’ll allow air to seep through, and that’s what you don’t want happening is air getting into the wine.” If oxygen gets in, the wine will oxidize and cause the flavor and aroma of the wine to spoil.

However, sparkling wine should be stored upright. You don’t want the cork of a sparkling wine bottle to get too wet, causing the cork to break down and let oxygen in.

At the end of the day, wine is wine. “It’s meant to be enjoyed while relaxing with yourself or family or friends, so don’t let it overwhelm you if your wine isn’t at an optimal temperature,” Phillips says. “Everyone has different preferences on what they like, so find what you like and do that.”

The Best Wine Storage Temperature

Wine storage is a factor that wine fanatics should be aware of because of the simple fact that most wines today are meant to be served within a few years after release.

As a result, ideal wine storage temperature must adhere to the latter if one must preserve the worth of the first sip.

Storing wine at the optimal temperature is necessary to ensure that the flavor and balance of your wine dont change.

If you dont want your wine to age prematurely or get spoilt due to poor storage conditions, learning about the right temperatures to store different types of wine is essential.

In todays post, were going to learn about the optimal temperature to store different types of wine. At the end of this article, youll avoid extreme fluctuations in temperature, which may damage your wine. Read through to learn the secret to wine storage temperature.

Contents

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What Is The Best Temperature To Store Wine

Storage time greatly impacts the conditions at which your wine should be kept. Generally, recommendations can be divided depending on whether youre planning for short-term or long-term storage where short-term is less than six months, and long-term is any time beyond that.

For short-term storage, you want to avoid any pre-mature aging or agitation. To do this, a constant temperature of 50°-59° Fahrenheit is best. If youll be storing your wine for longer, youll want to keep your cooler a little colder 53° to 57° Fahrenheit. This temperature will prevent spoilage and allow the wine to age and mature gracefully.

Can You Serve Red Wine Chilled

As a general rule, lighter styles of red wine can be served at lower temperatures.

Some light-bodied red wines benefit from chilling, too.

When recommending lighter summer wines in magazines September 2020 issue, Peter Richards MW wrote that good summer reds should be served at 10°C-16°C .

He added, Thats significantly cooler than many a summers day, so dont be afraid to pop them in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving.

It can be hard to generalise about particular wines or grape varieties due to variations in winemaking styles.

But youd typically find Beaujolais and Valpolicella Classico towards the lighter, chilled end of the serving temperature spectrum.

The below graphic from archive shows how Pinot Noir would generally range from light to medium-bodied, with some styles of Rioja in the mid-range and then the Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant and Syrah / Shiraz wines of this world in the full-bodied band.

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Optimal Fortified Wine Storage Temperature & Conditions

Storing temperatures for fortified wine, such as your typical Ports, Tawny Ports and LBV is, for the most part, the same. We recommend between 55 and 57 degrees Fahrenheit.

As a side note, the style of port or other fortified wine youre consuming will have varied lifespans once youve popped the bottle. Thats because some ports, such as Vintage Ports, are aged for very long periods in the bottle and are unfiltered. Thus, exposure to oxygen will quickly deteriorate the liquid once exposed. On the other hand, Tawny Ports and LBV Ports can last up to a month or so once open as oxygen was a critical factor in the production process so theyve already been exposed.

Wine Storage And Wine Cooler Temperature For Every Type Of Wine

You know how important it is to keep your wine in the right place, in the right conditions. But do you know that it is very important to set a different temperature for every type of wine? It affects the taste and helps the wine to age properly. Wine storage temperature is not so hard to maintain if you have a proper cooler.

There are different types of coolers provided on the market today. It is crucial to know the difference between the offered products and to pay attention to details. Getting yourself a superb wine fridge for a nice price is like getting yourself a wedding present. So dont hesitate to shower yourself with presents. Read our article to find out what types of fridges there are, why you should pick KingsBottle, and what temperatures are best to store your wine collection.

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Wine Ages 4 Times Faster At Room Temperature

Dr. Fulvio Mattivis, a food scientist at Fondazione Edmund Mach, gathered 400 bottles of Tuscan wine and placed half of them in a professional cellar and the other half in a dark room designed to mimic the natural temperature fluctuations of a home closet. Over the course of 2 years, he compared the wines chemical structure and taste.

your bedroom closet is no place for wine.

The Perfect Wine Temperature

Serving wine at the right temperature will emphasize its unique flavors and improve the taste overall. But choosing how you chill or serve your wine is not as simple as cold for white and room temp for red. Optimum wine temperature depends on the type of wine youre drinking, the amount of tannins in the wine, and of course, personal preference.

That said, for simplicity’s sake, heres a recap of the simple guidelines youll want to keep in mind:

Theres a good chance you might be drinking your red wine too warm. While highly tannic wines such as merlot can stand to be served a little warmer, lighter and fruitier reds are best when cooler.

Contrary to popular belief, you can over-chill a bottle of white. To make sure you get the best from that bottle, let white wine warm naturally before serving. Youll optimize the fruity flavors and delicate aromas.

For the perfect serve, remember our tips on how to properly store, chill, and serve wine. Before you know it, youll be enjoying your favorite bottle just as the winemaker intended.

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Optimal Wine Storage Techniques

Keep your wines cool and avoid any temperature fluctuation.

Wines stored in relatively warm environments will deteriorate in aromatic and flavor quality more quickly. Any temperatures over 75 degrees Fahrenheit can significantly shorten the life span of a wine regardless of style. At a minimum, aim to store your wines at temperatures below 60 degrees with as little temperature variation within storage as possible.

Its depressing to hear, but storing wine on racks in the kitchen or near your stove is not a good idea given the heat that tends to gather in these areas. Additionally, if you store your wine upstairs, remember that heat tends to rise. Consider storing your wines on the lower levels of your house or apartment, preferably in a basement where it remains cool and consistent.

Do not use the refrigerator for wine storage long-term. An exception to this is if youre storing wine after youve already popped the cork.

Avoid exposing bottles of wine to light, especially ultra-violet light.

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Store your wines on their sides, and monitor the humidity wherever you store them.

Utilize a wine cooler and or wine cellar for both short and long-term wine storage.

How To Mature Wine

Maturing wine is similar to putting it for long-term storage. To mature wine, place the wine bottle in an environment with room temperatures that do not fluctuate and a portion of humidity.

Direct sunlight or artificial light should be kept at bay, as they may cause irreversible damage. Intense exposure to light rearranges the chemical compounds found in wine, like oxygen and temperature, and causes wine faults. That means that the wine ages prematurely, and its aromas, flavors, and even color change for the worse. The final wine is called light-struck.

Odors also must be avoided, as they might find their way inside the bottle. If they do, they usually instill unwelcome aromas and flavors, like intense animal sweat or vinegar.

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Is Your Red Wine Temperature Too Warm

Equally, a red wine can become soupyif its served too warm.

Alcohol levels may then feel out-of-balance and the wines natural structure and freshness can be lost.

Wine is a question of personal taste, but these are generally considered undesirable qualities.

Many of us have probably experienced a soupy red wine at one time or another, whether on holiday in a warm climate or in a restaurant that hasnt got its wine cellar under control. Dont be afraid to ask for the ice bucket for a few minutes.

What Is The Best Temperature For Red Wine

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Regardless of whether you’re drinking a modestly priced bottle of wine or a more high-end vintage, serving and storing your wine at the correct temperature is the key to getting the most taste, character, and aroma out of your wine.

Fluctuations in humidity and temperature can have an enormous impact on how wine tastes and smells.

The following guide will help determine the best temperature for red wine so that you get the most out of your next glass of vino.

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