198 / 226
THE GENTLEMAN'S COMPANION
perature may, on infrequent summer days, be close to 80 or 85 degrees
Fahrenheit, we consider it proper to chill
all
still red wines gently to
around 60 degrees-and we don't give a worm-eaten fig what long
haired Gallic gentleman may tear his bangs out by the roots when he
hears of this heresy.
We haven't drunk as much wine as a Frenchman but we have drunk
about as much-probably a great deal more-red wine in the tropics,
the Oriental hot countries, than the average Frenchman. Therefore,
bearing in mind there are no cellars in such
pays chauds
that maintain
a temperature around 65 degrees, even at 70! anywhere, we cry that
too-warm red wine is just as bad in its way as too-warm white wine;
and we earnestly recommend that readers think over this point in
summer. We feel that red wine should be cool-not warm, not chilled.
This goes for sherry too, which we find tastes infinitely better here in
~Florida
when slightly cooled. It is a simple matter of reason, and not
letting ourself be bound and swept away by what we've read about
red wines, what some lame-wit, conceited ass has screamed at us after
his first and only 5 day stay in Paris; all the fuss and fume that people
kick up about a subject which is far worse than any mild mishandling
of wine could ever be!
A SIMPLE FRENCH WINE SEQUENCE with MEALS, No. I
WITH OYSTERS or SEAFOOD COCKTAIL, and SOUP ... White
wine; Chablis, or Pouilly; chilled.
WITH the ROAST ... Red wine; still Burgundy at cellar temperature;
claret at room temperature.
WITH DESSERT ... Chablis or Pouilly, as at the start; but better
still would be a somewhat sweeter wine of the average Sauterne type.
NOW a SIMPLE EUROPEAN SEQUENCE of WINE with
MEALS, No. II
WITH OYSTERS or SEAFOOD COCKTAIL, and SOUP . . . Dry
white wine; Rhine or Moselle; chilled.
WITH the ROAST . . . A sound glass of any good red wine, not sweet;