WINE MADE EASY – PART 1

SHOULD YOU ADD ICE TO WINE…

As the weather heats up, and the days get longer, the clink of ice in glasses is a welcome sound. But is it ever really welcome in wine? Can and should you add ice to your wine?
 
Here’s the low-down on what ice does to your wine: Unless you drink your wine very fast, the ice will melt and dilute the taste. That being said, many people enjoy their white or rosé a little diluted by ice. My personal opinion: do whatever you want as long as it makes you happy! That’s what wine’s for, after all.
 
Keep in mind though that other than just diluting your wine, over-chilled wine also affects the taste. Too cold, and the flavours will be tightly wound up, too warm and the wine will be loose and limp. 

So what’s the ideal temperature for wine?

The perfect drinking temperature for red wines is 12˚C > 18˚C, for white wines and rosé; 8˚C > 12˚C and Champagne, bubbly or dessert wine is best enjoyed between 5˚C and 7˚C.

If you’d rather not add ice, here’s how to chill your wine down, fast:

Wrap the bottle in a wet cloth and stick it in your freezer for 10-15 minutes. Alternatively, if you have a lot of ice on hand, place your bottle in an ice bucket (or anything tall and wide enough to hold the bottle and some ice). Fill it with ice and add a generous handful of salt. Give the bottle a twist to distribute the salt, and leave to chill for a few minutes. It should be ice-cold in no time.

And if you like the chilled effect of ice in wine but don’t fancy diluting it, pop a few grapes in your ice tray instead of water, then put them in your glass of wine. They’ll keep the wine ice-cold, without adding any extra water or flavours as they melt.

That’s about everything you need to know about that. Look out for more ‘Wine Made Easy’ tips coming soon!