Summer Heat + Wine = BAD!

The temps are going over 100 degrees this week in St. Louis. That means it's time to be on the lookout for "cooked wine". If you get a wine that's missing the aromas and flavors of fresh fruit, and instead get a stewed prune profile, chances are the wine has been overheated somehow. It's easily done in extreme heat. The suppliers who deliver to us all have air conditioned vehicles, but air conditioning always seems to break down when you need it most - it's a law of nature. UPS and FedEx do not have air conditioned trucks. Beware if you get a wine delivered on some late summer afternoon from one of these major carriers.  Even if wine is transported properly, it may end up on an open air dock - to sit for an extended length of time. I've witnessed this personally at a "big box" store that will go unnamed.

A couple of times, I've had customers return cooked wine after they've obviously left the bottle in their car for hours. Of course we take the wine back and try to smile courteously.

So, be careful with your wine in extreme heat. In your car, make sure it's in the air conditioning with you and not in the trunk. And don't leave it in the car to go to an afternoon movie. That's worse than the trunk!

Now you're probably thinking: geez, Tom it sounds like I have to actually buy and taste a wine before I know if it's cooked or not. That stinks. 

Not always.

Beware of the following: Obviously, if a bottle is warm to the touch, stay away. Don't buy a wine that is leaking from the cork, and stay away from wines where the cork is raised from the mouth of the bottle - even a little. The cork should be flush with, or a little below the mouth of the bottle. 

Finally, although this is not as sure a sign as the others, check to see that the foil on the neck of the bottle turns. If you can't move it at all, it may mean the wine has leaked and dried to a glue like goo under the foil.

Stay cool!

Tom