At the end of this post I have included a popular wine from each grouping that I have found to be crowd pleasers as well as suggested temperatures to serve. Since temperatures vary according to individual tastes, an easy rule of thumb is sweet red and white wines should stay refrigerated until the guests arrive, dry red wine should be refrigerated 20 minutes before the guests arrive and dry white wine should be taken out of the refrigerator 20 minutes before the guests arrive.
BEVERAGE TUBS
(Purchased at Home Goods)
While most red wine should be served at room temperature, white wine needs to be kept chilled. A metal or plastic beverage tub filled to the brim with ice is perfect for keeping drinks cold throughout the evening. A trick I learned from my son if your beverages are room temperature and you want to make them ice cold fast is to fill the tub with half water and half ice. Place the bottles in the ice water up to their necks and they will chill much quicker than if they were sitting in ice only. If chilled bottles weren't invitation enough, add greenery to the tub to make it even more inviting.
BEVERAGE DISPENSERS
(Purchased at Home Goods)
An apothecary beverage dispenser is another way to serve wine. Although it is great for serving red wine at room temperature, it can be challenging to keep white wine cold . Some dispensers actually have the middle of the inside of the glass molded so you can place ice cubes in it. This enables the beverage to stay chilled without touching and being diluted by the ice as it melts. The dispensers I have do not have that wonderful feature so what I do is make my own wine ice cubes to add to the dispenser.
What I do is buy an extra bottle of wine that I will be serving in the dispenser. Then I fill a couple of plastic ice cube trays with this extra bottle of a wine the day prior to the party. Being alcohol it doesn't totally freeze, but instead becomes halfway between an ice cube and a frozen slushee. Right before guests arrive I pour the chilled wine into the dispenser and then drop the slushee cubes into the dispenser also and the wine stays cold for hours!!
(Purchased at TJMaxx)
More than once I have underestimated how many wine drinkers there will be and have had to scramble in the cupboards for extra glasses in the middle of the party. Having learned my lesson I now put out more than enough to satisfy a thirsty crowd.
In addition to glasses, remember to put out a corkscrew and napkins for the convenience of your guests! All of this takes a little more up front organization to create a self-serve bar, but the convenience to the hostess as well as the guests, is well worth the extra preparation in advance.
ACCESSORIES NEEDED
Wine
Wine Glasses
Wine Bucket or Dispensers
Corkscrew
Napkins
WHAT WINE SHOULD I SERVE:
Dry White Wine - Chardonnay (Chilled-Serve at 55 degrees-Refrigerate until 20 minutes before serving)
Sweet White Wine - Riesling (Chilled-Serve at 40-45 degrees) - Make sure the label on the bottle does not specify "dry". If it does say "dry", then it will not have a "sweet" taste.
Sweet Red Wine -White Zinfindel (Chilled-Serve at 40-45 degrees)
Dry Red Wine - Cabernet Sauvignon (Serve at 65 degrees - Put in refrigerator approximately 20 minutes before serving - Uncork before guests arrive in order to breathe)
New Year's Eve - Champagne (Chilled) or *Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut Sparkling Wine (Chilled - Serve at 40-45 degrees)
*Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut is my personal favorite as it is slightly sweeter than traditional champagne. It is also slightly pricier at $15/bottle at my local store but on those special occasions it is worth the splurge!
Want more creative ideas? Please click below...
Pineapples & Palm Trees
~ Cheers ~
~ Debbie ~
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