The cold hard facts about putting ice in wine

Sep 26, 2023

In an age where prime ministers wear trainers to work, wine-etiquette anxiety seems completely unnecessary

On a hot day, most people I know will reach for ice to dump in their glass if the rosé has overheated. Most people I know will also comment defiantly or apologetically as they do so. But in an age where prime ministers wear trainers to work, wine-etiquette anxiety strikes me as being completely unnecessary.

In a recent Substack post, wine expert Joe Fattorini tackled the issue of why we mind so much about getting it ‘right’. Referring to the German sociologist Norbert Elias, Fattorini linked the refinement of table manners to a process of civilisation. ‘We stopped blowing our noses on tablecloths… Our revulsion at those who broke the rules is intensified because it represents a rejection of the whole Western social order.’

If it's any consolation to anyone who has wanted to put ice in wine but didn't quite dare, those of us who know our way around the stuff agonise way more about venturing an opinion in case doing so means we’re taken for Wine Snobs. (Is there any being more reviled?) In restaurants, the ice mood is permissive. ‘One hundred per cent here for people wanting ice in their wine,’ says Donald Edwards, head sommelier at the Michelin-starred La Trompette in Chiswick. Meanwhile, ‘I actually have a specific ban on anyone ever even raising an eyebrow if someone asks for ice in their wine,’ tweeted Mike Boyne of BinTwo, a wine shop and bar in Padstow that I highly recommend.

But wait! Perhaps you are wondering why raising an eyebrow might need specifically to be banned… Look, I didn't say wine pros don't have opinions. Most, however, are only concerned about what happens to their own wine, and if we’re talking about to ice or not to ice, there is no clear answer.

I have canvassed a large number of colleagues on the subject and, while an outlying few are always against it, the general consensus boils down to this. 1. If rosé or an inexpensive white is too warm, they will happily add ice. 2. Ice works best with the more ‘refreshing’ styles of wine; it's less good with chardonnay, or oaked styles. 3. Be generous: lots of ice will cool the drink more effectively without diluting it. Once the job is done, consider removing the ice unless you happen to drink quite quickly. 4. Ice with red is tricky. It can enhance the clean fruitiness of the wine or it can make the tannins jar unattractively. You won't know which until you try. 5. With anything that might be considered a fine wine – a good Burgundy, for instance, or an old claret – you do risk spoiling the wine if you add ice. It's better to consider alternative cooling methods.

The classic is, of course, putting the bottle in a bucket of ice and water. To speed things up, add salt to the water. This lowers the melting temperature of the ice, potentially taking the temperature of the water below zero, cooling the wine more quickly. I don't like bits of plastic floating around in my glass, but reusable ice cubes, which can cool wine in the glass with no dilution, do have a following too.

Mike Boyne says his own ice-filled wine glass is most likely to contain a ‘bright and juicy red on a hot, sunny day’. But if a customer wants ice in a fine Burgundy, they’re welcome to it: ‘Making people feel comfortable is the primary goal.’ We can all drink to that – pass the ice bucket.

12%; Morrisons, £7.75, down to £6 until 11 June

I’d happily drink this with ice on any night of the week. Tinged with lemon and almond blossom, it would be good with chicken kebabs too.

12.5%; Majestic, £17.99 or £14.99 in a mixed six

Juicy and generous, this feels rounded at first then pings with tart red cherries and the sharp fragrance of redcurrants.

13%; Aldi, £8.99

This beauty tastes more of Greece than of chardonnay – grapefruity and refreshing. Just the thing for a warm summer's day.