Important Wine Tip of the Day

Warning: If you're a snooty sommelier, please do not read!

I have a secret. It's not something you'll read about in Wine Spectator, nor is it likely that your most educated wine buddies will divulge this little tidbit. 

French champagne can resurrect from the dead even after it has been frozen. A few weeks ago, we celebrated our 27th wedding anniversary. Since we don't know anyone who has been married for that long (to the same person that is!), it was definitely an occasion to celebrate. We headed to one of our favorite Sonoma County restaurants, The Farmhouse, and had an extraordinary meal. We ended up taking home a half bottle of champagne and threw it in the freezer for “later.” Well, later never came.  Lucky for us, the bottle remained frozen and intact, next to the waffles and vanilla ice cream.

Last night I stumbled across the long lost bottle. I reluctantly took it out and let it defrost. After an hour or so, I'm pleased to say my Monday night instantly became more festive. Believe it or not, the bubbles were still bubbly and the flavors still appealing. While there were a few “floaties” here and there, it was surprisingly tasty.

Now I'm not recommending you freeze champagne for later use. This can actually backfire, causing quite a mess. On the other hand, don't fret if you make the same mistake I did. As long as the wine has room to expand and because the temperature is cold enough to capture the bubbles in solution, you should be fine.

And, with the price of good champagne what it is, it's worth a try.

| | Comments (5)

5 Comments


Donna Gilberg said:
February 6, 2009 2:24 PM

Arnold and I will have to do that with our 27th anniversary in June. Hope you and Don had a great one. Here's to you and the champagne.


Kim (aka Wilma) Author Profile Page said:
February 8, 2009 8:17 PM

Thanks for checking this blog out Donna. Great to hear from you!


JohnLopresti Author Profile Page said:
February 10, 2009 6:08 PM

I can imagine the explanation to the waiter, see, we have a dog at home, and could you please pack the champagne half bottle in ice...

Cellar aisle: the story about champagne's enjoying a rebirth after cryogenic storage recalls my surprise at the slushy sound in one expensive winery's cellar, about which I asked its famous winemaker when walking to his upstairs office with him once. For some reason, he liked to have his lab and computer console close to the hub where cellar pipes transited to the bottling premise. He explained that he sent white wine to the filler in slush consistency to assure aroma, I believe the temperature he cited was 27 F. for premium varietal white wine during pumping from aging tank to bottling filler.

Admittedly, I learned only some of his secrets, some purposely related, as above, some incidentally, as with his pinot noir experiments with a new diaphragm pump which used to slow as cold crush pad temperatures coated the pump with ice during transfer from tank to press.

I think champagne bottle glass capable of withstanding 7 atmospheres pressure is the only vessel that I would try in a freezer, however; mere punt glass in still tablewine might be to fragile.


John Author Profile Page said:
February 25, 2009 5:29 PM

You may not "know" us, but my wife Kathryn and I have been wine club members for several years and consider Dry Creek Chardonnay our "house" white wine. And... we have been married to each other 39+ years. We celebrated our 39th anniversary with champagne after gliding over Cappadocia, Turkey, in a hot air balloon.


Kim (aka Wilma) Author Profile Page said:
February 25, 2009 7:30 PM

I love hearing stories John. 39 years is remarkable in this day and age; I'm so glad that our Chardonnay is playing a role in another happy marriage!! By the way, we're hoping to put on a wine club cruise to Turkey in the not too distant future. It would great to have you join us.

Leave a comment

About this Entry

This page contains a single entry by Kim published on February 3, 2009 2:53 PM.

Enticing the Next Generation was the previous entry in this blog.

Nominate Your Favorite Wine Blog! is the next entry in this blog.

Find recent content on the main index or look in the archives to find all content.

welcome!

This is a blog about what it's really like to be in the wine industry...so sit back, take a sip and enjoy!

about me

our wines

our winery

our events

contact me

privacy statement



favorite posts

A Lifetime in Wine

Top 10 Traits of the Successful Family Winery

The Dreaded Family Meeting

Board Meeting Jitters

Is the Future of the Winery in Danger?

The Case of the Overweight Bottle

Wine and Dementia

Wanted: Talented (Normal) Individual for Family Owned Winery

A Sea of Wine

The Heroes of Our Industry


monthly archives


subscribe


Hopes & Dreams

Owning a Coastal Cottage

Sailing for 6 Months

Getting a 100 Point Score

Favorite Haunts

Coast of Maine

Dry Creek General Store

Dry Creek Kitchen

Healdsburg Bar & Grill

Spoonbar

Sonoma Country Antiques

Baci Cafe & Wine Bar

The Farmhouse

Istanbul's Grand Bazaar

Bad Ass Coffee

Bistro Ralph

Bits of Press

Food & Wine Magazine

The Wine News

Wine Enthusiast

Wine Spectator

Press Democrat

Sunset Magazine

Connoisseurs' Guide

Dan Berger's Vintage Experiences

Cruising World Magazine

Oprah Magazine

The Washington Post

Coastal Living Magazine

Wine & Spirits Magazine

People Magazine

SAG Awards Magazine

Forbes Magazine

Favorite Magazines

Coastal Living

Down East

Sunset

Country Living

Quarterly Review of Wines

Wines & Vines

Wine Spectator

Wine Enthusiast

California Grapevine

Connoisseurs' Guide

Practical Winery & Vineyard

WineReviewOnline

Vineyard & Winery Mgmt

Blog Buddy List

Fermentation

Hip Tastes

Pinot Blogger

All The Best

Julia Flynn Siler

Vinography

Winery Web Site Report

The Pour - Eric Asimov

Dr Vino

Steve Heimoff

Start Up Ladies

Good Wine Under $20

Blind Muscat

The Wineroad Blog

Gabe's View

Wine Peeps

Vici Vino

Cellarmistress' Cellar Talk

Uncork Life

WineVine-Imports Blog

The Wine Witch

SOURMASHED


Honorable Mentions

Fermentation
Wilma Hits The World of Blogs
Most Intriguing New Wine Blogs of 2008
Midwest Wine Guy
Winery of the Month
Julia Flynn Siler
Meritage wines - and a fascinating glimpse into family business
Winery Web Site Report
New Winery Blog: Wilma's Wine World
Start Up Ladies
Insider's View of Family Owned Dry Creek Vineyard
The Glue that Keeps the Whole Thing Going
Atlanta Dish
Blog of the Week
Blind Muscat
The Merits of Meritage
Wineries.net
Boston Wine Expo exhibitors, and the reason why winemakers are so darn happy