How long do I refrigerate a Sauternes?

I read that a Sauternes should be about 55 degrees. In practical terms, how many hours in the fridge is that?

Reply to
janey3white
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No disrespect intended, but how can we answer this without knowing at least the ambient temperature of the wine to begin with?

If I pull a Sauternes from the cellar, it's going to be pretty close to 55 F already. So the answer for me is "no time at all." If you are posting from someplace very hot, no doubt the answer is "rather longer."

In practical terms, stick it in the fridge and check it every once in a while! :) Or use a bucket of mixed ice and water, much faster.

-E

Reply to
Emery Davis

skrev i melding news: snipped-for-privacy@z34g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...

If the bottle is at 100degrees you'll need some time. :-) If we assume 70 and that your fridge holds 45 you'll probably need 2 hours, I guess.

My cellar is 48, so my problem is the opposite of yours :-)

You are better off starting with a bottle that is a bit too cold. The wine will warm up in the glass and you can follow the development during the temperature rise. hth Anders

Reply to
Anders Tørneskog

Ah, good points. I hadn't considered the question of a "starting temp." It's not in a temp-controlled cellar (it should be; I know). It's just in a cool part of my basement. I'll just stick it in for a couple hours. Thanks.

Reply to
janey3white

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You are welcome. Do also take note of Emery's excellent suggestion of a bucket of ice and water. That works more quickly and has the additional advantage that if you find the wine still is too warm it is easy to put it back even when opened. Anders

Reply to
Anders Tørneskog
Reply to
Joe "Beppe"Rosenberg

In addition to the good responses of others, you may also need to consider the temperature of the wine glasses. If the glasses have a paper-thin bowl, then they will not change the temperature of the wine much. On the other extreme, consider glasses with very heavy bowls of cut crystal and that you store the glasses in the kitchen where they might reach a rather high temperature, say 85 degrees F. Even if your wine is at 55 degrees F when you pour it, it will increase in temperature considerably if you pour it into a heavy, warm glass. In such a case it might be better to cool the glasses to about the temperature of the wine before you pour, or chill the wine to a lower temperature.

Reply to
cwdjrxyz

"Joe "Beppe"Rosenberg" skrev i melding news:i9-dnfIvKZPDVKbZnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com...

Ouch - New York State? Being here in Europe I automatically thought of the real stuff. Isn't the practice of malappropriating names outlawed in the US?

Hmm, I'd still go for 55F considering that it will warm up in the glass - do we have a Sauternes expert in this ng? (For a second opinion, Beppe! :-) Anders

Reply to
Anders Tørneskog

And the temperature of the fridge!

If you really want to get anal about it you should bear in mind that the required temperature wil depend on the aromas in your particular bottle. Oh, and personal preference. Wasn't there somone famous who used to drink Yquem with ice?

Personally I would concentrate on enjoying the wine rather than fretting about the precise temperature.

Reply to
Steve Slatcher

Agreed. Translated into more practical terms, you should be aware that there are all kinds of Sauternes produced, not all Sauternes is good, in fact very few are. A bottle under $40 cannot be any good (at that price you cannot find good botrytis wine, it simply costs a lot to make...), so these bottles are best tasted very cold indeed.

Even pricey Sauternes can be mediocre, if you want to experience good Sauternes then go for the really reliable stuff. For these, 55 degrees might be a little on the cold side. A cold wine will warm up fairly fast at today's room temperatures, if it is too cold pour some in your glass and wait a bit, try it as it warms up and see at which point it hits the spot...

cheers

Mike

Reply to
Mike Tommasi
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Okay, we've occasionally discussed the cost to produce a bottle of wine. You cite this precise number most, uh, confidently.

Would you be so kind as to break out the assumptions so that us poor folk can understand where the $40 (depart cave, of course) comes from?

My thanks in advance! ;)

-E

Reply to
Emery Davis

Yes, Johnson suggests a rather low temperature for Sauternes. However he suggests 54 - 57 F for the best sweet German wines in his encyclopedia, while he suggests 46 - 50 for good German and Austrian wines and 50 - 54 for best dry German wines. I also remember reading that the late Baron Philippe de Rothschild had some very old Sauternes in his cellar. He sometimes served some of his extremely old Sauternes that was beginning to show a bit of oxidation, slightly frozen, and he claimed this made it much more refreshing and drinkable.

I think Johnson's suggestion might not be much too low for generic Sauternes blends at the lower end. The low temperature makes they less cloying, and most do not have much interesting bouquet to lose be cooling too much anyway. However I avoid poor sweet wines, when possible. However, for mature Yquem, I start out at cellar temperature in the 50s F range. Sometimes if the wine is very hot with alcohol and has plenty of fruit, it is more refreshing at a slightly lower temperature. I have some silver bulbs with stems filled with a liquid and keep these in the freezer. If you want the wine just a bit colder, you only have to stir the wine in the glass a bit with these devices. Unfortunately I do not remember where I bought these devices many years ago.

Reply to
cwdjrxyz

The blondes are restless tonight...

Reply to
uraniumcommittee

Earlier in this thread, mention was made of some English writers recommendations on the optimum temperature for keeping Sauternes(Barsac's too). I believe people in the UK in general keep their homes chilly by American standards. When an Englishman decrees wines like Domaine Penguin be served at room temperature, they mean in the 60's, the US room temperature even with increasing fuel costs is 5 degrees higher.

Reply to
Joe "Beppe"Rosenberg

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