Q&A: Wine & Food Questions
Keeping white wine
I have a wine cooler and keep my whites at 50 degrees. How long will a good white keep at that temperature and is that the proper temperature at which to keep them?
Thank you for your reply,
Jerry
Answer From Expert Jennifer Rosen
40 to 52 degrees is optimal for whites. Most important is that it doesn't vary, that there's very little light or vibration, and that corks (if there are corks) are kept wet by lying the bottles on their sides.
As for how long they will keep: depends on the wine. Well over 90 percent of wines these days are built for immediate drinking. Only a small number of wines actually improves with age. White burgundies and German rieslings are among those...if they're good and came from the right year.
As for the rest - generally you want to drink them within a couple of years. What are you waiting for, anyway? Get out the corkscrew!
About The Expert
Jennifer Rosen, award-winning wine writer, educator and author of Waiter, There’s a Horse in My Wine, and The Cork Jester’s Guide to Wine, writes the weekly wine column for the Rocky Mountain News and articles for magazines around the world. Jennifer speaks French and Italian, mangles German, Spanish and Arabic, and works off the job perks with belly dance, tightrope and trapeze.
Read her columns and sign up for her weekly newsletter at: www.corkjester.com jester@corkjester.com
Visit Jennifer Rosen's web site
