michael wrote:

> I have been drinking a 2006 Regent( a European hybrid developed for
> early ripening in cool climates ) red wine recently and have been
> amazed at the difference temperature makes.My mini vineyard is in
> Herefordshire,in southern England,and whereas I have been making some
> excellent dry white wines(as judged by others),I am new to red wine
> making.
>
> The year 2006 was very good in England,with all grapes ripening very
> well,and earlier than usual.I fermented the grapes on the skins and
> with the grapes natural yeast,and achieved full fermentation after 2
> to 3 weeks-the grapes were pressed after 6 days maceration.The wine
> was matured in gallon glass demijohns for three years,and bottled
> recently.I tried the wine in my cool pantry (it has been pretty cold
> in England this winter),and was a little disappointed.It had a very
> nice fruity nose but seemed a little tannic.We compared it with a
> commercial Australian Cabernet ,and was not convinced that mine was
> that much inferior.We decided to serve it to our friends at a dinner
> party,as English red wine made from English grapes is quite unusual.
>
> The surprise came when I warmed up the wine to about 65For room
> temperature.The wine had lost its tannic nature and was very good,with
> absolutely no comparison to drinking the wine at 50F.I am well aware
> that red wine should be drunk at room temperature,but had no idea that
> its character should change so much;it makes it difficult to assess
> wine being stored in a cooler place.
> I would welcome comments
> Michael

Yes indeed. Red wine will taste different at the temperature ranges you
mentioned. I belive most people will find that red wines in the 50 - 55
temperature range taste better to them for red wines. I am not sure how
temperature relates to taste of tannins but even with whites, the cooler
the temperature, the more acidic the wine will taste and the more "fruity".

"Room Temperature" has a different meaning today than it did in the old days
without the modern heating systems we have today. Try some of your whites
at different temperatures and see if you can tell the difference also.