Wine Serving Temperatures: Getting the most from your wine
How much does the wine serving temperature really matter? The answer is just as much as a cold beer & a hot cup of coffee!
Getting the serving temperature right will help you to get the best enjoyment from your wine.
Serving white wine too cold will inhibit those beautiful delicate aromatics & flavours. Serving red wine too warm will allow alcohol to mask subtle secondary & tertiary characters that the winemaker has put so much work into creating.
Especially in Australia, where ‘room temperature' is often significantly warmer (in the mid-20s celsius) than in Europe, where it might be 15-18c.
Generally, it's best to serve white wine a little warmer than we think & red wine a little cooler than you might assume.
Here are our best practice tips on wine serving temperatures for each of our wines.
Sparkling, Light Unoaked White Wines & Rose
Sparkling wine, light-bodied white wines & our crisp Provence-style Rose are best well chilled to match their crisp acidity. Ideally, chill your wine in the fridge overnight, but if you're in a hurry, here's our top tip for quick chilling. Fill an ice bucket three-quarters with ice and water so that the wine is entirely surrounded by cold water. This method will allow the warmth of the wine to transfer to the ice bucket more easily. Even faster? Add salt to create a slurry.
Full Bodied White Wines & Light Bodied Red Wine
If the winemaker has fermented or aged white wine in oak or gone to the effort of lees or malolactic fermentation like our 'Wally White' Semillon, Viognier & Semillon Sauvignon Blanc, the wine will have delicious texture, secondary & tertiary characteristics that will shine at a slightly warmer temperature. For these wines, we suggest a light chilling only. Or remove the wine from the fridge an hour before serving.
We often think red wine should be served at ‘room temperature'. This is true if you live in a century-old French chateau where the room temperature is likely closer to 13 degrees celsius. In Australia’s climate, red wine, especially light-medium-bodied reds like our Sangiovese & Tempranillo, benefit from a light chilling, especially when consumed in the warmer seasons. Try chilling them for an hour in the fridge. Or if you’re headed for a picnic or party, pop them in your esky with your beers to enjoy when you arrive.
Medium & Full Bodied Red Wines
Depending on how you store your red wine, getting the best from the aromatics, structure & winemaking characteristics of medium and full-bodied red wines will be achieved by serving them at a cool room temperature of 14-18 degrees celsius.
So in Australia's warmer climate, it makes sense to give your reds some time to cool down in the fridge before service (20-25 min). But if you store your wine in a wine fridge at cellaring temperature (12 degrees Celsius), take it out 15 minutes prior to serving to allow the temperature to come up a little. If in doubt, it’s always better to serve your reds a little cooler, as it will warm as you consume it.