Storing & Serving Our Sparkling Wine

We often get asked on how best to store & serve) our Sparkling wine, so here are some tips:

Storage conditions would depend on when you plan on drinking the wine.

If you have bought a bottle, and you are planning to drink it within the next couple of days, you can just put it in the fridge. Storing upright in the fridge for a longer period is not ideal though, as the cork is a natural product and can dry out.

So where to store it if you don't plan to drink it soon?

If you are going to drink it within a month or so, you can store the bottle in a cool place,, upright should be fine, but keep it away from light and vibrations.

But if you don't know yet when you are opening the bottle, or would like to store the wine for a longer period, the best storage conditions would be horizontally, away from light, under stable conditions, and away from vibrations and at constant temperatures (between 10-13C), plus avoiding temperature fluctuations.  Some humidity would be helpful (not more than 60 to 70%). A wine cellar, or wine fridge would be ideal.

Serving Sparkling Wine

The ideal temperature to drink sparkling wine is between 7-10C, so if your bottle wasn't yet in the fridge, pop it in there for a few hours before opening. Alternatively use a wine cooler.

If you need a bottle chilled quickly, don't put it in the freezer!

To quickly cool wine, the best method would be using a salted ice bath. Fill a bucket with equal amounts of ice and cold water, and add a generous amount of salt. The salt lowers the freezer point and makes the bath colder. Add your bottle of wine it, and make sure it is submerged up to the neck.

You can speed up this cooling down process by very, very, gently, moving the bottle around every few minutes or so. Don't agitate the bottle too much, especially with Sparkling Wine!

Opening Sparkling Wine

The first step is to remove the foil over the cork of your sparkling wine. Make sure the bottle is angled away from you. Keep your thumb firmly on top of the cork while carefully loosening the cage, just in case the cork is forced out prematurely by a build-up of pressure. You can either remove the cage fully or just keep it loosened around the cork.

Next - still holding the bottle at a tilted angle (away from you and anyone else!) - keep the fingers of one hand wrapped around the cork and the other hand at the base of the bottle and start twisting the bottle – not the cork. Keep twisting until you feel the cork start to loosen as the pressure eases and the cork comes out. Rather than a loud pop, there should only be a soft sigh!

Coupe, flute or tulip?

The flute glass is the most popular of sparkling wine glass. The long narrow shape reduces the surface area, which helps keeping the temperature and bubbles in optimal condition.

More recently, there has been a trend for more tulip-shaped glasses. These glasses are similar to flutes but have a wider bowl that narrows slightly at the top. This shape allows for more room for the wine’s aroma to develop while still showing the bubbles. The shape also helps directing the aroma to your nose, enhancing the tasting experience. A small white wine glass could be used as an alternative.

The coupe, a low stemmed glass with a broad, shallow bowl is a more vintage style, popular in the 1930s. Although it can make sparkling wine taste fruiter and softer, the flat shape also means there is more exposure to the air, and bubbles will disappear quickly.