Come on, be crazy, put your (expensive!) red wine in the fridge

You drink white wine chilled, red at cellar temperature. But hey, be adventurous and put your red wine in the fridge this summer. A chilled red tastes wonderful in the evening sun beside a glowing barbecue.

It’s actually strange that white wine is mainly drunk in summer, while red wines have to wait in the wine rack until temperatures drop again. Because some white wines are so rich and creamy that they pair much better with wintry desserts than with a pasta salad. And good red wine is simply good red wine, no matter what date appears on the calendar. With a serious steak, you still just want to drink a fantastic glass of red, don’t you?

Red-hot coals

The solution: put those red wines in the fridge for a while. This brings out the wine’s fresher, fruitier flavors. While you happily tend the glowing coals and watch your tomahawk reach the highest level of perfection, the wine in your glass slowly develops: every time you smell it, you discover something new; every time you sip, you find another flavor. Is the meat absolutely perfect? Then your wine is at its best too.

Enjoy it chilled

A tip for a red wine you’ll also thoroughly enjoy lightly chilled: the Campo de Golf Petit Verdot 2019 by Mas Fuertes. This Spanish beauty had 15 months to develop wisdom, depth and extra flavor in French oak barrels. You can taste ripe red fruit and, in the background, sultry spiciness from those barrels. Want more power and character? Simply reach for the Campo de Futboll Blend, made by blending syrah, petit verdot and cabernet sauvignon. A year older, and matured for 12 months in barrels.

Perhaps it’s sacrilege (or perhaps not), but how about making a top-notch burger from beautiful meat that you grind coarsely yourself, homemade sauces and a good bun? The meat spends exactly long enough on a grill in your Green Egg or on the old-fashioned hibachi. And then, instead of an ordinary beer, a hearty glass of that Campo de Futboll—what do you think?

I’m off

Mas Fuertes is the winery of Dutchman Floris Visser and his father. A real ‘I’m off’ story: a ruin in northern Spain, a neglected vineyard and two driven men determined to make something beautiful of it. The vineyards are farmed organically, so there are no pesticides or other chemical treatments. It’s an incredible amount of work, so besides love, every bottle also contains its share of blood, sweat and tears: weeding, pruning, giving the vines a little water in dry periods and picking the grapes—everything is done by hand here. You know what that means: these exceptional wines aren’t cheap, but better expensive than unavailable, right? Come on, treat yourself and put a few of these bad boys in your fridge. Get the coals glowing, slip on your flip-flops and make time for some serious enjoyment.

Go ahead and order

Fancy some? You can read more about the wines of Mas Fuertes and Floris and his father’s life’s work on their website. Order a few bottles right away, and your late summer is sorted. Cheers!

Also read:

• What is the perfect wine temperature?
• Is champagne failed white wine?
• Bluff your way into: wine terminology

This article was created in collaboration with Mas Fuertes