Yes, whites that are not cold stabilized before bottling will throw tartrates if the temps get too cold for too long. These tartrates are, in essence, no different than cream of tartar. They are not harmful to consume nor do they taste terrible . … but you probably won’t want to consume too much of them. Will the dropping of these tartrates adversely affect the flavor of a wine? Tough to say - we do see slight pH and acid shifts before and after cold stabilization, but usually they are pretty small.
As far as reds go, you can have the same precipitation affect here as well… What generally happens when a red gets really cold is that you basically ‘freeze it in time’. As part of my Masters study, I looked at the same wine stored under varying temperatures over a 9 month period and compared objective chemical markers like total tannins, anthocyanins, polymeric pigments, etc. What I found was a marked decrease in anthocyanins and a marked increase in polymeric pigments, or color stabilized tannins, over time. This study did NOT involve smelling or tasting such wines - just the markers. And these wines were post pressing - NOT finished bottled samples . . .
As others have said, wine is, in general, a lot sturdier then we give it credit for.
About a week ago I sipped a glass from a freshly opened bottle of Matello Whistling Ridge Blanc, put it in the freezer and forgot it. The next day it was an ice cube and luckily the bottle was fine. Put it in the fridge and by that evening had to handle it a little to warm the bottle and dissolve the remaining ice. The wine was still remarkably good!
I expected some sort of disjointed mess and the alcohol to stick out. Not at all. Served at similar temps, I’d be very surprised if even the most experienced tasters could tell the difference between the frozen and unfrozen.
Didn’t someone (RMP?) suggest about a decade ago that the best way to preserve the unused portion of a half bottle was to pour it into a nonreactive surgical bag, squeeze out all the air, and throw it in the freezer?
Yes…I was stupid enough to try it myself. There was a lot of precipitation after I thaw the wine. And it tasted very light and nothing like the one before freezing.
I the wines you listed are less susceptible to cold. I worry more over delicate whites because of the textural change in them that extreme cold can cause.
Maybe, but when I have part of a bottle of Sauternes and stick the remainder in the fridge, I get the white crystals. Once I get them, the wine is flabby and less vibrant. Undrinkably so? No. But it can turn a great wine into a mediocre one, IMO. I never store Sauternes in a regular refrigerator any more, and I’m happier for it.
Incidentally, the crystals do not redissolve when warmed. Once formed, the crystals are permanent.
How cold is your fridge? If you are seeing tartrate precipitation from storing an opened bottle in the refrigerator then you probably already had them settled at the bottom of the bottle, or perhaps just all floating around from opening/pouring/etc.
All of these tales of ruined white wines from cold (read: not freezing…corks get compromised sometimes if ht wine freezes) are bunk.
Once crystals are formed, it takes more energy to dissolve it again. Also tartaric acid in some dessert whites (TBAs and Sauternes) are oversaturated. It is impossible to dissolve them again without heating to a higher temperature.
34 Fahrenheit. And no, the precipitate was not there prior to storage in the refrigerator. And we aren’t talking about a single incident. I did my homework and assumed that the internet was correct and that the crystals were “harmless”. However, over the years, I have come to the conclusion that I actually can tell the difference.
Of course, you effectively just called me a liar. But thank you for your contribution, anyway. And BTW, I never said it “ruined” the wine. I said it could turn a great wine into a mediocre one, which isn’t the same thing at all. I’ve even done a side-by-side with a couple of lesser bottles, and I remain convinced that, if tartrates precipitate, it has an effect on flavor in rough proportion to the amount of the precipitate. YMMV.
David, do you have direct experience like this? There probably aren’t that many compounds in a wine that will precipitate at low temperature - tartrate is the one we know will, but what other compounds? From a different perspective, a higher concentration of other compounds (EtOH, sugars, anything else) will reduce the freezing point even further in a more “concentrated” wine, so maybe that’s even protection against freezing.
Adam-if you say change a great wine to a mediocre one that is pretty much ruining it.
Are you leaving bottles in the fridge for weeks? A few days is no issue at all. I cannot count the thousands of bottles where I have experienced this. Your experience makes absolutely zero sense to me. That’s all.
I can’t recall specific wines. They were some young mid priced cali cabs and many some Aussie reds.
Did you see pigments precipitation after thawing the wine? The freezer thing only worked for me for couple cali chards. I tried it on cabs and it was ruined.
Well, my Arneis arrived from their cross-country trip from K&L, and 2 of the six bottles have pushed corks. There is no apparent damage on the other four.
I am chalking this one up to experience. Although they probably should have asked me whether I wanted to ship under these conditions, I should have told them to wait. At least as much my fault as it was theirs. Besides, given the minimal cost involved, and the drink-early nature of the wines, it doesn’t seem worth bothering about.
I have only ever seen tartrate crystals. Never seen pigments precipitating. I honestly have to wonder if those wines had seen some additives that then precipitated out.