Storing and serving wine: temperatures, decanting, open bottles
A good wine served badly loses half its appeal. The good news: a few simple habits are enough, no sommelier kit needed.
Updated 23 October 2026
The right serving temperatures
- Sparkling wines: 6 to 8 °C.
- Dry, crisp whites and rosés: 8 to 10 °C.
- Rich or age-worthy whites: 10 to 13 °C.
- Light reds (gamay, pinot noir): 12 to 14 °C.
- Full-bodied reds: 15 to 18 °C.
"Room temperature" dates from before central heating: at 21 °C, a red tastes heavy and alcoholic. A quarter of an hour in the fridge often helps. Conversely, take whites out a little before serving: too cold, they smell of nothing.
Should you decant?
A young, tannic red benefits from half an hour to an hour of air: it softens and opens up. An old wine is decanted just before serving, gently, to leave the sediment in the bottle: too much air would tire it. Whites and light wines do fine without a decanter.
How long does an open bottle keep?
- Reds and whites: 3 to 5 days, re-corked and in the fridge (take the red out a little before serving again).
- Sparkling wines: 1 to 3 days with an airtight stopper.
- Fortified wines (port, vin doux naturel): several weeks.
Storing bottles without a cellar
Wine dislikes heat, temperature swings, light and vibration. Without a cellar, pick the coolest, most stable spot in the house (a north-facing cupboard, a utility room, under the stairs), away from the oven and radiators. Lay cork-sealed bottles on their side so the cork stays moist; screw caps can stand upright. Ideally, around 12 to 14 °C.
Keep or drink?
Most wines are made to be drunk within two or three years. Only some structured reds and a few great whites improve with age. When in doubt, the wine's sheet says so: at VinoBox, every wine comes with its own, and the Collection level brings together wines for ageing.
Also read: which wine with Belgian food.
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