“It wasn’t long ago that chilling red wine was the sort of niche sommelier activity everyone laughed at,” said Will Lyons in The Times. “How times change.”
Chilled red wines are popping up in trendy bars and on supermarket shelves. Aldi recently launched its first “chill-to-reveal” red, in a bottle with a “clever” thermodynamic label that turns blue when the wine is at the perfect temperature to drink.
Cooling down lighter reds with a brief spell in an ice bucket brings out their “vibrant, fruity notes and makes them all the more refreshing”. While it’s more traditional to chill beaujolais or cinsault, “adventurous” wine merchants are introducing a wide variety of other grape varieties to the “chilled-reds lexicon”, including frappato and nerello mascalese from Sicily.
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But not all red wines should be put in the fridge, said Rosamund Hall in The Independent. “I would avoid overly chilling big, heavy reds with high tannins”, like malbec or cabernet sauvignon, as you’ll risk bringing out “astringent” notes.
Instead, try chilling Gerard Bertrand’s Le Chouchou Syrah – a “dangerously moreish” blend of grenache, syrah and cinsault that’s like a “posy of pretty scented flowers” and “bright red cherries”. Or grab a bottle of The Interlude Pinot Noir and “chill it down for an easy BBQ summer sipper”.
You can’t go wrong with Domaine de Vavril Cuvée de l’Ecluse 2024, said Victoria Moore in The Telegraph. This “silky” beaujolais “smells of redcurrants” and has a “very seductive ease and brightness”.
And if you want to try chilling a “slightly heavier” red, I’d recommend Araldica Barbera d’Asti 2022, said Lyons in The Times. Packed with vivid notes of black fruit, spice and a “smidge of oak”, it’s “gloriously drinkable” and pairs well with “robust salads, cold sausages or pizza”.
Whichever you pick, avoid serving it “ice cold, as you might a sauvignon blanc”. Chilled reds only need “an hour or two in the fridge door, or half that lying down at the back”. The bottle should just “feel cool to the touch”.
