Tasting #2: Wine Serving Temperature and Pinot Noir
This week I got to pick the wines and after some suggestions, I went with the Pinot Noir. It has been quite a long time since any of us had a Pinot so there were several surprises and lessons learned this week. A debate arose on the ideal temperature to serve red wine. To prove my point that reds should be served at a cooler temperature, we experimented with different temperatures for reds. Spoilers: serve red wines slightly cool, between 55-68°F, and white wines fridge-cold, between 48-55°F. We’ll start with the wine serving temperature
Lesson - Wine Serving Temperature
Serving wine at the proper temperature is important because it can affect how it smells and tastes, and ultimately, your drinking experience. We don’t need a wine thermometer thankfully, we can all follow some simple guidelines to ensure we're serving our wine at the ideal temperature.
The 15/15 rule. The 15/15 rule of thumb is a great starting point. Simply put the reds in the fridge for 15 minutes before serving and take the whites out of the fridge 15 minutes before serving. The more alcohol present in the wine, the more pronounced it will be at warmer temperatures. Therefore, lower-quality wines do better served cooler, as it can mute potential flaws in the aromas. Keep in mind that the cooler a wine, the less aroma will volatilize in your glass.
If all else fails, you can follow these guidelines: If the wine burns your nose with the smell of alcohol, it might be too warm, so try cooling it down. On the other hand, if the wine doesn't have any flavor, try warming it up.
When it comes to Pinot Noir, it's important to note that it falls under the cooler side of red wines. Pinots are light-bodied, acidic, and lower in tannins than other red wines, so it's recommended to serve them slightly on the chill side, between 55-60°F.
Wine Tasting - Pinot Noir
Tasting this week was a little different as we ended tasting the wines on three different dates and doing second tasting. During our tasting, we tried three different Pinots from Burgundy, Oregon, and California. We were very excited to try out the Burgundy and Oregon wine for our podcast and demoted the California wine for our family Easter dinner. Surprisingly, the Tuli Pinot Noir from California was a clear favorite, pleasing the whole crowd at our Easter dinner. The color was ruby, with notes of dark cherry, vanilla, and oak. The smooth, velvety finish was pleasant on the palate and paired beautifully with our turkey dinner.
Let's talk about the other two wines we tasted. The Simonnet-Febvre Irancy Paradis 2018 was as light as a feather, but it had the highest alcohol content. Unfortunately, it had an astringent taste that was too much for our palate. As for the Domaine Loubejac 2020, it had a burnt, bitter flavor that made us wonder if it was made by a pyromaniac chef. I tried to salvage it by keeping the glass in an ice bath, but the finish still hit us like a punch to the face.
We did have a bit of a hiccup with the recording of our Sunday tasting. But we still managed to come up with some amazing tasting notes, like the “silver bullet shot into my mouth” - All in all, it was a bit of a wild ride, and we can't wait to do it all over again!
Wines Tasted and Rating
W&L 4.0, Tuli Pinot Noir 2019
W&L Rating 2.0, Simonnet Febvre Irancy Paradis 2018
W&L Rating 2.5, Domaine Loubejac 2020