The Old Advice about Serving Temperatures for Wine is Incomplete

If you read this blog you have probably heard the the standard advice about the right temperature to serve various wines. Sparkling wines should be served quite cold, around 42-48°F. Light-bodied whites and rosés at roughly 45-50°F, with richer whites between 50-55°F. Light reds such as Beaujolais or some Pinot Noir can be served around 55°F, while fuller reds belong somewhere in the 60-65°F range. Note that it’s best not to serve Cabernet at the 72°F “room temperature” of the average American house. The traditional advice to serve red wine at “room temperature” arose in part from the practice of bringing wine up from a cool cellar before serving; the appropriate room temperature for wine was considerably cooler than what many of us now mean by the phrase. I don’t find as many occasions to modify this advice about white wines. But I often prefer red wines slightly chilled, and not only Gamay or Pinot Noir. Temperature is one more variable we can manipulate to change the shape of a…