Should Champagne Be Chilled? (Full Guide)

Champagne, the most famous wine in the world. And for good reason. 

With such a legacy, it’s important to know the best ways to serve and store Champagne ahead of your next celebratory drinks with friends.

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Should Champagne Be Chilled?

Yes, Champagne should be chilled. Champagne should be served chilled between 8 - 10°C (55°F - 65°F) and stored cooler than room temperature at 11 - 15°C (51°F - 59°F).

The Best Temperature to Serve Champagne

The best temperature to serve Champagne is between 8-10°C (46-49°F).

There’s nothing to celebrate about lukewarm Champagne, so make sure your bottles have been well chilled ahead of serving. 

Serving the Champagne at this temperature will help to compliment all of those wonderful, complex tasting notes and make sure the bubbles behave themselves once the bottle has been opened. 

Related: How To Store Champagne

Here are 5 of the most popular styles of Champagne with guidance on the best temperature to serve them:

Popular Styles of Champagne and Their Ideal Serving Temperature

• Non-Vintage Champagne - This house blend of various vintages prefers to be served chilled (8-10°C or 46-49°F)

• Vintage Champagne - A celebration of one particularly wonderful harvest, requires a serving temperature to match (8-10°C or 46-49°F)

• Blanc de Blancs Champagne - Made from the delicious Chardonnay grape, this Champagne has notes of grapefruit zest and lemon meringue, serve chilled (8-10°C or 46-49°F)
• Prestige Cuvée Champagne - The Champagne to end all Champagnes, this sought after style can handle being served a little bit warmer (10-12°C or 49-51°F)
• Rosé Champagne - The most seductive of Sparkling wines, this Champagne pours a gorgeous rose pink and tastes like sharp raspberry danishes, serve chilled (8-10°C or 46-49°F)

So that’s serving temperatures sorted, but what about storage? What temperature should you store Champagne?

What is the Best Storage Temperature for Champagne?

The ideal temperature to store Champagne is between 11°C and 15℃ (51–59°F).

Champagne won’t last forever, but if you store it well it can last you a few years. 

So for those extra special bottles try and store them in a wine cellar, wine refrigerator or cabinet. 

If you don’t have access to specialised wine storage there’s no need to panic, just put your Champagne somewhere cool, calm and with minimal disturbances. 

Try to avoid using a kitchen fridge for long term storage where possible as this can dry the cork out and cause faults further down the line.

So when can you put Champagne in the fridge?

Should You Put Champagne In The Fridge? 

Absolutely!

Always put your Champagne in the fridge before serving.

Champagne loves to be served cold, there’s nothing worse than a room temperature glass of sparkling wine, is there? 

Your kitchen fridge works great here but may run a little cold, so take the bottle out about half an hour before you wish to celebrate.

A specialised wine fridge will keep your Champagne at its ideal serving temperatures, so here you can drink straight from the fridge.

Fantastique!

So how long should Champagne go in the fridge for?

How Long Should You Chill Champagne For?

The good news is that Champagne likes to be cold, almost as much as we like to drink it.

Place your bottle in the fridge a 3-4 hours before you plan on drinking it so it can reach the right temperatures. 

If you have a domestic refrigerator the drier conditions may damage the corks over time, so it’s best to store your Champagne elsewhere if you plan on storing the bottles for a longer period of time.

However, if you have a specialist wine fridge the conditions will have been designed to look after your wine, and in this instance Champagne can go in a wine fridge for as long as you wish.

Related: How Long Does Champagne Last?

5 Tips on Serving Champagne

• Most types of Champagne are perfect when served slightly chilled, aiming for between 8-10°C or 46-49°F.

• Use a wine cooler to help keep your Champagne at an optimum serving temperature in between servings.

• Most sparkling wine mishaps happen because the bottle is too warm, so remember the colder the bottle the calmer the fizz!

• Store your Champagne between 11°C and 15℃ (51–59°F) somewhere cool and consistent with minimal disturbances.

• Try to place your Champagne bottles on their side when you can, as this will help to prevent the corks from drying out and faults occurring as a result.

Related Guide: How Many Calories In a Glass of Champagne?

Summary of Chilling Champagne For Serving and Storage?

Here's a summary of all you need to know about how to store and serve Champagne at the best temperature depending on the type:

Champagne Style	Ideal Serving Temperature	Ideal Storage Temperature
Non-Vintage Champagne	8-10°C (46-49°F)	11-15°C (51–59°F)
Vintage Champagne	8-10°C (46-49°F)	11-15°C (51–59°F)
Blanc de Blancs Champagne	8-10°C (46-49°F)	11-15°C (51–59°F)
Prestige Cuvée Champagne	10-12°C (49-51°F)	11-15°C (51–59°F)
Rosé Champagne	8-10°C (46-49°F)	11-15°C (51–59°F)

Before You Go...

We hope you enjoyed our article on whether Champagne should be chilled.

Do you need to know how to chill red wines correctly?

Read our next article about chilling red wines correctly here...

Should Red Wine Be Chilled? (Full Guide)

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