Red Wine Serving Temperature Recommendations

The best wine serving temperature for most red wines is at or around room temperature. However, some red wines vary slightly. This section provides some additional tips for the wine temperature for the different types of red wine.

Wine serving temperatures can affect the taste, aroma and other characteristics of your red wine. If it's too warm, you may taste more alcohol in the wine. If it's too cool, the wine might be a little lighter and less flavorful than what you remember when you first tried it.

The overall guideline for a red wine serving temperature is around 60° to 65° F, which is why you'll usually hear people refer to serving it at room temperature. In most countries, the typical room temperature is around 60° to 65° F. However, room temperatures in the US are usually a little warmer, around 65° to 70° F.

Here are more specific guidelines for some different types of red wine:

If Your Wine Is Too Warm

If your wine is too warm, it's best to chill it for a little while to cool it to its proper serving temperature listed above. You can chill it by placing it in the refrigerator. The best option is to use a dedicated wine refrigerator. You can also use your main refrigerator as long as it isn't too cold.

Another option to lower the temperature of the wine is to chill it in a bucket or in the sink using ice and water. You will need to chill it for about 5 to 10 minutes to lower the temperature a few degrees. Monitor the wine to make sure it doesn't get too cool.

If you need to chill the sparkling red wines or sweeter red wines from room temperature, you'll need to allow it to chill for about 20 to 30 minutes.

If Your Wine Is Too Cool

If your wine is too cool, the best way to warm it up is by leaving it at room temperature for a few hours. Do not use extreme heating measures to increase the temperature of your wine, since that damages the wine.

You can find out more about red wine storage and proper wine storage temperatures in the section 8 Tips for Storing Wine. There are some great serving tips too in the section Decanting Wine, Pouring and Other Serving Tips.