Is It Really That Bad To Put Ice In Your Wine?

It’s a good idea to know what ice really does to your beverage before you plop it in.

You do it with soft drinks, iced tea, water and all sorts of summer cocktails. So why do wine snobs turn up their noses when they see you adding a few cubes to a warm glass of rosé?

There are some logical reasons given by true oenophiles, but there’s also a changing wine culture that rules it to be acceptable, at least in some more relaxed circles.

This is your wine on ice.

Before you get too heavy-handed with the Sonic-style nuggets in the chardonnay, it might help to realize the “why” behind the long-standing edict of serving wine only at a prescribed temperature.

Ashley Herzberg, a winemaker for Avaline Wine, offered this explanation: “Ice does change the character of wine in many ways. It can alter the mouthfeel by diluting the alcohol, modify the acidity by increasing the pH and, of course, it can dilute the flavors. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it does change the wine from the vision the winemaker had on bottling day.”