December 12, 2017 Plume Ridge Bottle Shop

It's Party Time! Don't Stress, Just Breathe

Hosting parties can be stressful and worrying about serving wine properly may be the last thing on your mind. Even so, taking a couple simple steps to serve wine properly will greatly enhance any celebration. Selecting a special wine for the occasion and presenting it well will let your party shine as bright as that ball in Times Square. Here are a few easy suggestions to enlighten your guests and your taste buds.

Sparkling Wines & Champagne, Rosé and Light Dry White Wines:

These wines should be chilled to 40-50° F before serving. To achieve this temperature, leave the bottle in the fridge for at least an hour then remove the bottle and wait 30 minutes before serving. This temp can also be achieved by chilling the bottle in bucket of cold water and ice for 30 minutes. Full contact of the ice water to the bottle is actually the quickest method for chilling, just keep a small towel handy to dry the bottle before serving. Sparkling wines are best served in a tall narrow flute glass which will hold the bubbles longer than the cute and stylish wide mouth party glass, iconic of the 192o's. White wines are best served in a glass with a small bowl and narrow opening at the top. This type of glass helps to collect the delicate aromas of white wines making your first sip more complex and interesting.

Full Bodied White Wines and Light Bodied Red Wines:

These wines are best served at 50-60° F. To achieve this temperature, some chilling in the fridge is recommended. Once the bottle is cool, leave it out for 45 minutes to 1 hour before serving so the wine is only slightly cool. These wines can also benefit from some aerating or decanting. 15 minutes should be sufficient for young wines with medium to low levels of tannins. If you are unsure about the level of tannins in your wine, refer to the grape cluster diagrams on our product pages. For stemware, a standard sized wine glass is sufficient for serving these wines.

Full Bodied Reds:

Big, bold reds should be served slightly cool at 60-65°F. They do not usually need to be cooled. Decanting or aerating is highly recommended for these styles of wines. Heavy, intense reds with high levels of tannins benefit from exposure to air for at least an hour. This helps the wine to soften slightly and open up the complex bouquet of flavors and aromas within. Younger wines (less than 8 years old) benefit the most from aerating making them less bitter at first taste. With older wines it helps to let the sediments settle at the bottom. If you do not own a decanter, a glass pitcher or clean vase is perfectly acceptable. In a party environment, you may have a variety of open bottles at once making it difficult to allow decanting time. For situations like this, we suggest an aerator, which does the job of decanting quickly. Just remember to rinse with water before pouring a different wine through. Red wines are best served in wine glasses with large round bowls and large mouth openings to allow the wine to have more contact with air.

Other Useful Tips:

If you are serving straight from the bottle, we recommend the Drop Stop to avoid drips down the side of the bottle after every pour. This will help keep your hands clean as well as your table linens. Just rinse and reuse! The Rapido Cork Screw may also be helpful for you this holiday season. This easy to use opener is great for everyone from the rookie bottle opener to the most experienced wine connoisseur. Why put more muscle into opening a bottle than necessary?!
Remember a 750 ml bottle of wine is approximately 4.5 glasses.

We hope that you have a safe and happy holiday. Cheers & Happy New Year!