I haven’t been sharing my wine diary as often as I had intended. April has been quite the crazy month for me. But I do have two different kinds of wine I want to share with you but first I have to share what I learned last month about storing and serving my wine. We have been receiving wine from The California Wine Club every month and I always just put it right in my fridge. I thought you served all wine cold. Turns out I had no idea what I was doing when it came to wine.
First Rule:
Store corked wine bottles on their sides in the dark. If you store wine upright for a long amount of time, the corks will dry out, and air will eventually get to the wine, spoiling it. If you store it label side up, it’ll be easier to spot any sediments that may have formed in the wine over time when you do eventually pick it up. I’m actually not good at keeping wine for very long, I like to drink it.
White wines should be consumed after 2-3 years of storage (though select White Burgundies (Chardonnays) can be aged and stored for over 20 years.
Red wines can be stored and aged for anywhere between 2-10 years to mature, depending on the quality of the wine. This, however, depends on the type of red wine and the balance of its sugar, acid and tannins. Not all wines will improve with age.
I was told by a friend that red wine should be stored in a cool dark place but not a refrigerator and white wine should be stored in the fridge.
When you are ready to serve white wine you get it out of the fridge 30 minutes before your company arrives.
When you are ready to serve red wine you put it in the fridge 30 minutes before your company arrives. I was drinking red wine so cold that I wasn’t able to taste all the flavors.
Here is a temperature gauge to serve wine at:
- Blush, rose and dry white wines: 46-57F (8-14C)
- Sparkling wines and champagne: 43-47F (6-8C)
- Light red wine: 55F (13C)
- Deep red wines: 59-66F (15-19C)
I receive wine from California Wine club in exchange for a post about wine.
How to Properly Store & Serve Your Red and White Wine http://t.co/z9gqXyvP via @MomStart