How to Chill a Bottle of Wine Really Fast

You can easily chill a bottle of wine in less than 10 minutes.

If your guests are arriving shortly or you decide would like a glass of wine and none of your bottles are chilled, don't fret. You don't have to settle for room- or near room-temperature wine. There is an easy way to chill wine in less than 10 minutes without affecting its quality. Fortunately, the items you need to chill the bottle of wine are most likely found in your home.

Things You'll Need

• Bucket or container
• Ice
• Salt

Instructions

1. Fill a wine bucket or tall container with approximately one part ice and two parts water. Use enough water and ice so that when you insert the bottle of wine in the middle, it is covered up close to the neck with the ice water. However, do not cover the cap or cork.

2. Add about 1/2 to 1 cup of salt to the ice water and stir. Rock salt works best. The ice water is now ready for you to insert the wine bottle.

3. Stir the ice water around the bottle of wine with a large spoon for one to two minutes. Circulating the ice water is how some fast-chilling units work, according Schaefer's Wine Food & Spirits. This spreads the warmth the bottle emits throughout the ice water so the bottle chills quickly and evenly.

4. Rinse and dry the bottle before serving the wine to remove all the salt from the bottle, which could drip into the wine glasses..

Tips & Warnings

• Put the bottle of wine in the freezer. Depending on how cold you prefer your wine, it takes between 30 to 60 minutes to chill, according to Wine Lover's Page.com. Set a timer so you don't forget to take it out.

References

• The Kitchen: How To Chill Wine Quickly with Salt
• Daily Wine Dispatch: Wine Basics Frequently Asked Questions
• Schaefer's Wine Food & Spirits: Wine FAQs
• Wine Lovers Page.com: Quick Chill