We all have busy lives and sometimes our patience runs out. Waiting for a bottle of champagne to chill at the end of a long day or before a big celebration may feel like you’re waiting forever! Who’s got time for that? So you stick the bottle of bubbles in the freezer and hope the process speeds up, but what if you forget about that wine altogether? How long can you keep wine in the freezer? Will it freeze? If so, is it still okay to drink? Is your only option to make very expensive wine slushies?
It’s okay. We’re here to help.
Can You Freeze Champagne?
In short – Yes, champagne does freeze!
Unfortunately, we know this from experience… Don’t do what we’ve done and leave your champagne in the freezer overnight because you got distracted and forgot about it. Also, don’t leave wine in the car overnight in the middle of the winter when it’s -28°C. All wine can freeze, including champagne.
Champagne’s Freezing Point: At what temperature does champagne freeze at?
Champagne’s freezing point is slightly lower temperature than water. Champagne will start to freeze once it gets to a temperate at about -5°C to -9°C.
What happens when a bottle of champagne freezes?
If you’ve forgotten about a bottle of bubbly in the freezer, don’t panic. But whatever you do, do not open it right away. A frozen bottle of champagne can turn into an explosive fountain of champagne slush.
When champagne freezes, the wine expands. This can cause your bottle to break, or the cork may be pushed out. If your bottle is still intact, that’s great — but there’s still a whole lot of pressure in there, so be careful!
Champagne’s properties when thawed after being frozen:
Changing the temperature that drastically (whether freezing or “cooking” in the heat) also changes the chemical composition which affects the taste. Likely it will have lost most or all of its beautiful aromas and flavours and may be a little bit boring because some of the fruit characteristics will have disappeared. Along with the aroma and flavours, your champagne will likely have a large reduction in carbonation.
What to do with frozen champagne: Is frozen champagne still good?
Okay, you made the mistake of leaving your favourite bottle of champagne in a snow bank overnight, or in the freezer. After all, out of sight, out of mind. Now what? Does frozen champagne go bad? Will frozen champagne make you sick?
In short, frozen champagne won’t make you sick, but it might not be as pleasant to drink. You’ve probably wasted your money and you probably won’t do it again. Lesson learned. However, there is a glimmer of hope and you shouldn’t immediately throw out frozen champagne. Try it first and trust your senses! If it smells fine and tastes good — go ahead and drink it! If something takes off, throw it out.
Here are some things you can do with frozen champagne:
- Add it to a pitcher of Sangria.
- Pour it into ice cube trays, re-freeze and use it for Sangria.
- Add it to orange juice for brunch time Mimosas.
Why can you leave vodka in the freezer, but not champagne?
Why does Vodka, for example, not freeze in your home freezer, but wine does? In short, it’s because of the alcohol content or abv (alcohol by volume). The alcohol found in these beverages is ethyl alcohol (ethanol). If you had a container filled with 100% (pure) ethyl alcohol, it would start to freeze at -114°C. If you had a container filled with water, it would start to freeze at 0°C.
Spirits generally contain 40% abv. The freezing point for an alcoholic beverage that is 80 proof (another way to say 40% abv) is about -27°C. So it is possible to freeze vodka, but most home freezers aren’t set at that cold a temperature. Your home freezer is probably set for around -17°C which isn’t cold enough to make straight up vodka popsicles. If you add water to the bottle it will freeze (if you have teenagers, you already know this trick!)
The alcohol in wine is less than half of what is in spirits. Wine is only about 11-14% abv on average, with champagne coming in at around 12% abv. Therefore, the freezing temperature is much less, which is why champagne freezes if you forget about it in your freezer.
Guess what?
Beer freezes too!
How to Quickly Chill a Bottle of Champagne:
We’ve heard it all at Just Wine! Tips and tricks to chill wine that people say is the best. For instance, putting the bottle of wine in your toilet tank. Not to be confused with putting in in the toilet bowl, we’ve been told that the back of the toilet is cold enough to chill down wine quickly. We disagree, but whatever floats your… er… uh… bottle? We’ve also been told if you wrap the bottle in wet paper towel before you put it in the freezer that will chill your champagne quickly. We don’t know about that one either. We have a better solution.
What is the fastest way to chill wine or champagne?
Surprisingly, throwing a bottle into the freezer is not the fastest way to chill a bottle of wine or champagne. The best way to chill any wine is to put the bottle in an ice bath with some salt. Why salt? Adding salt brings the temperature down to lower than -20°C which is colder than your freezer. So while putting it in the freezer will cool it down is faster than just putting it in the fridge, it’s not as effective as salt and ice. Plus, you risk forgetting about it in the freezer. Leaving it out on the counter or table in a bucket of ice means the chances of you forgetting about it are pretty slim.
How long do I chill champagne in an ice bucket?
Remember, we’re trying to avoid freezing! Generally about 15-20 minutes is enough time to cool down your wine in an ice bucket with salt. If you leave it there for over 30 minutes it won’t likely freeze, but it will be too cold to enjoy drinking. If wine is too cold, you can’t pick up on some of the nuances of flavour. In North America people tend to drink their whites too cold which means you can’t distinguish between some of the lovely flavour and aroma characteristics.
How long should you keep champagne to chill in the freezer?
If you don’t have ice or an ice bucket on hand, then a freezer will chill your bottle of champagne. But how long should you keep your bottle in there to ensure it doesn’t freeze? Some people will tell you 15 minutes as it actually takes much longer than that to actually get slushy. There are a couple of factors in play. First, it depends on what temperature your freezer is set at. Second, it depends on the alcohol content of the wine. The higher the alcohol, the longer it will stay safe from turning to slush. For the most part, it takes at least a couple of hours for wine to start getting slushy, but you still don’t want to leave your champagne in the freezer for that long.
Now that you know the icy details of frozen champagne and how to chill champagne without freezing it, have a look at these interesting articles about sparkling wine:
Infographic: Your Ultimate Guide to Sparkling Wine
Behind the Bubbles: What is Sparkling Wine and How is It Made?
Pop That Cork! Sparkling Wine of Every Kind for All Occasions
