Chill Wine Quickly

7 Ways to Chill Your Wine in a Hurry

You just had unexpected guests arrive or you just plain forgot to chill your bottle of Chardonnay before dinner. Putting a bottle of wine in a refrigerator can take up to three hours to chill. Three hours! Who has that kind of time?

To help you navigate this totally unchill scenario, here are seven ways you can get your vino from room temperature to the life of the party in no time.

Bucket + Ice + Sodium Chloride

You have a bucket, you have the ice, but where can you get sodium chloride this time of day? Don’t worry, it’s just a sciencey term for table salt. Adding salt to icy cold water will actually lower the temperature. Don’t ask us to explain it, but just know that salt works it’s magic on ice and makes your wine chill faster.

Use Your Freezer

Sure, it’s not as innovative or exciting as some of the other ideas. But, most bottles will chill in about 30 minutes which isn’t so bad when you’re in a jam.

Wrap It Up

Placing a cold wet paper towel or rag around the bottle before putting it in the freezer makes sure the entire surface of the bottle is being chilled.

Pretend You’re a DJ and Give It a Spin

Whether you’re chilling your wine in the refrigerator or a bucket of ice, giving it a light spin every couple of minutes will ensure the all of the wine is coming into contact with the cold bottle. After all, you don’t want a chilled bottle, you want chilled wine.

Think Small

Smaller amounts of wine will chill faster. So pour a glass or two and carefully place them in the freezer for a faster glass of the grapes while you wait for the rest of the bottle to do its thing.

Go Grape

Keep some frozen grapes in your freezer for wine-chilling emergencies. Adding them to a glass of wine will act the same as ice cubes but won’t water it down as they warm.

Go Metal

Metal wine “rocks” will also work the same as frozen grapes.

Generally, white wines are served chilled while red wines are often enjoyed at a cellar temperature (just below room temperature). That said, nothing beats your preference when it comes to wine, so there is no wrong way to enjoy it.