Red Wine...why is it served at room temp?!
Red Wine...why is it served at room temp?
Answers:
Technically, depending on the wine, it should be served slightly below room temperature. Some fruity reds should even be served slightly chilled.
Ideally, the temperature of most red wines should be between 16 and 18 degrees centigrade which would be as if it just came up from a cool wine cellar. Too cold and the subtle flavours can be lost, too warm and it will come off as being flat. Others like a Beaujolais Nouveau should be served between 12 and 15 degrees, and a bold Shiraz or Cabernet should be around 18 to 20 degrees.
As to why it should be served at this temperature, it's all rather complex and has to do with how the flavours in a wine come out at certain temperatures.
Red wine flavors are more enhanced at room temperature. When a red wine is kept cold the flavors a 'locked up'. Most red wines are not high in acid like whites.
Put simply, the flavor profile and bouquet in a red wine is best accentuated at "cellar temperature" - slightly below ambient (room) temperature. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part red wines lend themselves best to a warmer serving temperature. If a wine is too cold, whether red or white, the "character" of the wine is impeded and you'll not get the full flavors and aromas the vintner intended.
Oh, by the way, the same is true for beer - colder is NOT always better.
It tastes better that way. I only chill it if it's bad wine or for sangria.
Because it tastes nasty cold!