Wine Fridge Temperature For Different Styles Of Wine

Your bottle of wine tastes best when stored and served at its optimal temperature. 

A wine fridge lets you store your bottle at the proper temperature, keeping the wine’s flavor intact. 

The rule of thumb is: reds are best stored at room temperature and whites and bubblies, chilled.

Let’s uncover the ideal wine storage temperature (including the perfect temperature range) for different wine styles. We’ll then cover why wine fridge temperature matters and go over six tips for using a wine fridge.

The Ideal Wine Storage Temperature

Storage time and the style of wine determine the ideal temperature of your wine fridge.

If your wine needs long-term storage, keep it at 52oF-57°F (11°C-14°C) to help it age gracefully for years and to prevent spoilage.

However, if the plan is to open the bottle within six months, store your wine at its serving temperature — red wine is best served at 54oF-64°F (12°C-18°C), white wine at 46oF-54°F (8°C-12°C), and sparkling wine at around 43°F(6°C).

Curious about the ideal wine cooler temperature for different wines?

The Optimal Wine Fridge Temperatures For Different Wine Styles

Here are the different temperatures that are optimal for storing different wine styles:

• Fortified Wine: Sweet or dry, fortified wines like Port and Madeira are best stored at 66°F (19°C).
• Full-Bodied Red Wine: Red wine styles like Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon express themselves best at 63oF-64°F (17oC-18°C).
• Light to Medium-Bodied Red Wine: Reds like Merlot and Pinot Noir taste exceptional at 54oF-61°F (12oC-16°C).
• Full-Bodied White Wine: Whites like Chardonnay are stored at 50°F (10°C).
• Light to Medium-Bodied White Wine: Wines like Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Sauvignon Blanc should be kept at 46°F-48°F (8°C-9°C).
• Sparkling Wine And Dessert Wine: 41°F-46°F (5°C-8°C) is the best temperature for storing sparkling and dessert wines.

Wondering why wine fridge temperature is important?

Why Does Wine Fridge Temperature Matter?

Store wine at over 70°F, and it’ll age rapidly, losing its aromas and flavors. 

And when the wine fridge temperature is too low, the wine may form ice particles, forcing it out the cork. 

Besides, a rapid wine temperature fluctuation can make the wine cork contract and expand, causing oxygen seepage and premature wine aging.

Maintaining the right temperature not only helps with wine preservation but also helps it age gracefully by helping it develop complex flavors, aromas, structure, and acidity.

We’ll now mention a few things to remember when refrigerating wine.

6 Things To Keep In Mind When Using A Wine Fridge

Here are six things to consider when storing wines in a wine fridge:

1. Temperature Setting

If you use a single zone wine cooler to store different types of wines, set the wine storage temperature as 55°F(13°C). It’s also easier to chill or warm up the wine (depending on the style) while drinking.

For a dual zone wine cooler, keep one zone at 55°F(13°C) for long-term storage and the other at a cooler temperature setting of 52°F(11°C) for immediate consumption.

2. Where To Keep It

Do not keep your single zone or dual zone wine cooler in a frequently used room so that the beverage cooler doesn’t face continuous vibrations. This is because vibrations speed up chemical reactions and alter the wine’s taste.

3. Humidity Level

Set the humidity level between 50% and 80% for your wine coolers to ensure that the corks don’t dry out and avoid wine oxidation.

4. Fridge Lighting

Your bottle wine cooler should use LED lights or incandescent bulbs since fluorescent lights emit UV that can age your wines prematurely and damage the labels.

5. Fridge Capacity

Keep the wine refrigerator under-filled — if the refrigerator is overfilled, it won’t be able to maintain the proper temperature for long.

6. Bottle Orientation

Store your wine bottle horizontally in the cooler to prevent the cork from becoming brittle.

Store Your Exotic Wine At The Ideal Temperature

Storing wine at the right wine fridge temperature lets it age well and develop the intended taste. 

However, it’s challenging to maintain the ideal temperature required for different wines without a proper wine cellar.

If you’re a wine enthusiast or wine collector and want to avoid the trouble of putting together a storage space for your wine collection, check out Vinovest — an online wine investment company that helps you buy, store, and sell the finest wines from all over the world.