Sometimes, what may look like an easy job ends up being a complex one. Chilling wine is one of these tasks. It sounds like a cakewalk, but only a few can nail the job. However, if you follow certain guidelines and sip the wine at the right time, you can enjoy it to the fullest.
First, understand that you cannot chill all wines at the same temperature as their chemical composition is different. For instance, the best white wines have a lot of acidity in their composition, while red wine majorly consists of tannins. Sparkling wines have a lot of carbon dioxide, while dessert wines hold different amounts of residual sugar. Therefore, the temperature plays a crucial role in chilling them as it can either elevate the wine flavours or mute them.
Below, we have listed a few dos and don'ts of chilling wine!
Dos
- Advance planning: Advance planning is essential for almost everything we do in life; the same goes for chilling wine. The ideal temperature for the fridge to chill wine ranges between 35°F and 40°F. Make sure to stack the wine bottles at the back of the shelf to not affect the chilling process by the frequent opening of the fridge doors. When chilling red and white wines, take them out of the refrigerator an hour or two before you pour them into glasses.
- Pour wine into a glass and refrigerate: Pour your wine into a glass and cover it using plastic wrap to maintain the aroma. Then, put the glass inside the fridge. It will chill your wine faster than placing the bottle inside the refrigerator. Please note that you should place the wine glass at the back to prevent spills and regulate the temperature.
- Submerge in a salted ice bath: It is one of the most popular hacks to chill wine quickly. Get a bucket of ice water and mix ½ pound salt into it. Submerge the wine bottle in this heavily salted bath, and it will be chilled in 15 minutes. However, please do not try this for Champagne and sparkling wines as they might explode.
Don'ts
- Avoid storing in the fridge: We are all guilty of doing this atleast once —- storing the bottles in the freezer to get the wine chilled quickly and forgetting about them. The next day you would find an icy wine explosion which might not deteriorate the quality of the wine but may cause a mess. When the water freezes in the wine, it may expand and push the cork out or crack the bottle. Therefore, set a timer for 30 minutes if you use the freezer for chilling wines.