Plan B Forum

nice on a hot day, or crime against Viticulture ?

Chilling a bottle of not so good red makes it a lot more palatable!

Do you really want to drink a Merlot or a Shiraz at 42 degrees Celsius?

Fair doos. I'll have the bottle in the fridge then.

Depends on the grape variety, a light weight red like Tarrango should be chilled but not a full bodied Zin or Shiraz.

Serving at room temperature doesn't mean serving at 42c it means serving around 18c so yeah fridge it for a bit but not too long, I reckon.

Either way ... enjoy. I'm on the wagon for three months to lose a bit of heft before the wedding so I'm actually insanely jealous

I thought, when it came to wines, that Burgandy was the only NEVER chill wine.

Then, I was never a wine head...

Generally reds are served at cellar temperature and not chilled further; but if you like a red wine cold, go for it.

To me wine is the same as steak in that respect. Only a complete snob will tell you how you should drink your wine or cook your steak.

Me, I prefer a red unchilled but I can definitely see the attraction of chilling it on a hot Summer's day.

As Big RR says, the ideal temperature for red wine is cellar temperature (58-63F). Chilled is too cold; room temperature is too warm.

And no, I will not tell you how you should drink your wine. I merely suggest a way to derive your greatest enjoyment from it.

For Gob, the greatest enjoyment would be from some Bacchanalian horn of plenty constantly pouring down his throat!

Andrew D wrote:As Big RR says, the ideal temperature for red wine is cellar temperature (58-63F). Chilled is too cold; room temperature is too warm.

And no, I will not tell you how you should drink your wine. I merely suggest a way to derive your greatest enjoyment from it.

Finally an oenophile speaks!

The Hen wrote:For Gob, the greatest enjoyment would be from some Bacchanalian horn of plenty constantly pouring down his throat!

Welcome my alcoholic brethren! An apéritif before your sacrament?

I keep my red wine pretty cool though I never fridge it. I tend to swill big reds and find that when cooler the punch of the alcohol (14% abv minimum) is swaddled somewhat, allowing the character of the wine to be appreciated at least to a degree as I chug it, examples being Baron De Lay, Prez Cruz, The Black Shiraz, Bootstraps Shiraz, Andre Brunel, Novas CS. More subtle reds I like to bring into a warmer arena than my cellar (which consists of a cupboard which is, for some reason, cool year round, it's probably haunted) - I have a dwindling supply of a 2002 Château Margaux that certainly benefits being warmer than the temps I traditionally swill my chunkier reds at...

I'd say that the chillin' of a red should stop at the rose'. Civilization, teetering as it is now, might not stand if visigoths begin drinking reds at below 40F.