Everybody knows you serve whites from the fridge and reds at room temperature.
Hold it right there.
Exactly what is room temperature?
Is your ‘room’ the dining hall of a castle in France in midwinter.
Or a Queensland verandah on Christmas Day?
When you’re roasting beef do you just pop it in when you reckon you have ‘oven temperature’? No, you are much more precise.
To enjoy your wine to the full, the answer is now as simple as ODT.
You’ll find it on the back labels of Taylors wines.
At the recent launch, third generation wineman Mitchell Taylor, talked about his family’s company.
“We have always been innovators. It’s in our DNA. When my grandfather and father planted 400 acres of cabernet in the Clare Valley many laughed. No market for that, they said. With other Clare winemakers we put all whites under screw cap but then when we did the same for our reds, even my father said. “I hope you got that right.”
History shows we did.
We recently released another first … a sparkling wine fermented in the bottle under screw cap. It was the right thing for our customers and they tell us they love it.
And now. Here comes our ODT. “
That’s Optimum Drinking Temperature, folks.
Mitchell continues: “Our winemakers do an amazing amount of work to make the wines as good as they possibly can. Their skills ensure all the subtle aromas and flavours are right there in the bottle. ODT helps you enjoy the wine the way the winemaker intended. You won’t miss the nuances we’ve tried so hard to put in.”
How does ODT work for you?
On the back label is a small heat sensor patch. It changes colour with temperature. You match the shade it shows to the graduated scale alongside. It’s easy to spot when your wine is spot on.
A noticeable difference
The proof is in the tasting.
We tried four of the Taylors Estate wines. A Riesling and a Chardonnay, a Cabernet and a Shiraz. The whites were first served super chilled from an ice bucket and then at the correct temperatures. Chilled they are a fine mouthful, but somehow simplistic and the acid too obvious. At the right temperature the Riesling is bright and charming with lovely florals and sensuous fruit. The chardonnay poured too cold is dumb and oaky, but at the right temperature you inhale the lovely white blossom fragrance and savour peachy fruitiness rising above the oak, all now in balance.
The warm shiraz is not a bad mouthful if a bit flabby and lifeless, but a couple of degrees cooler the difference is remarkable. The wine is juicy, rich and savoury. So too the cabernet. Warmish, it is just OK, but lacking fruit. A few degrees cooler it is crisp and elegant with the vibrant dark fruit you want in a good cabernet becoming noticeable.
Timing is everything
So, in a hot summer dining room you should have your reds in the fridge or the ice bucket for maybe twenty minutes. And take your whites out quite a few minutes before you pour.
A too-cold white will warm to the right temperature on the table, also when swirled in your mouth. It is self-correcting.
But pour a too-warm red in a warm room and you will never get back all the delightful flavours you have paid for.
From now you should see all Taylors Estate wines carrying the ODT feature, with the Promised Land range following soon.
Of course you can play with temperatures with any wine you buy, but Taylors now give you the easy and precise measurement right on the bottle.
For more, visit your bottle shop or go to www.taylorswines.com
