The #1 Pro Tip for Chilling Your Wine Bottle — Fast

Picture it: You’re in your kitchen on a balmy Saturday night, the room is alive with laughter, and the scent of marinated shrimp sizzling on the grill is wafting in from outside. Guests are trickling in, toting armfuls of foodie goodies as well as that old social reliable: a bottle of wine. You reach for it, ready to pop the cork and pour, only to feel the disappointing warmth of a bottle straight from the store shelf.

Sound familiar? Maybe not in all the specifics, but generally, of course, because we’ve all been there before. And, if you also happen to be human, you likely frantically Googled “how to chill wine fast” in such a moment, too.

There are plenty of old wives’ tales out there, from tossing in a handful of frozen grapes (who readily has those on hand?!) to spinning your bottle in salted ice water (is this a circus trick or a dire emergency?!).

But if you want the gold standard — the number one pro tip that sommeliers, chefs, and wine enthusiasts alike swear by — it’s this: Wrap your wine bottle in a wet kitchen towel and pop it in the freezer. Before you know it, you’ll be with a cold glass of deliciousness in hand. Easy peasy.

The science behind the chill

Here’s why this method works: Water conducts heat (and cold) far more efficiently than air. When you wrap a bottle in a wet towel, you’re essentially creating a cool, damp environment that hugs the entire surface of the bottle. The liquid in the towel draws out heat much faster than air alone, and by placing that bundle in your freezer, you’re harnessing the coldest, fastest chilling power your kitchen has to offer.

Compare this to the classic ice bucket, a favorite at restaurants and receptions, which cools the bottle primarily through contact with a mixture of ice and water — and often, too little of the latter. While effective, the cold only reaches parts of the bottle at a time, and the process is further hindered if guests are constantly removing and replacing the bottle to pour. The wet towel and freezer trick envelops your wine in an icy embrace, chilling it efficiently from all sides.

Timing is everything

So, how long does this trick take? In most home freezers, a room-temperature bottle of white wine can reach ideal serving temp (from 45–55°F) in 20 minutes. Sparkling wine, which benefits from being a touch colder, might take a bit longer, but rarely more than 30 minutes to chilled perfection. The wet towel speeds up the process so significantly, you’ll have just enough time to plate your proteins and toss your salad before the bottle is chilled and ready to go.

Don’t have a kitchen towel or clean dish rag on hand? Do your best to improvise: a few rotations of paper towels, a small piece of clothing or couple of clean socks, some super-quilted toilet paper, no one judges what needs to be done when there’s wine waiting to be enjoyed. But if you really can’t find any clean and sturdy cloth-like material around, just pop the bottle in the freezer on its own — it’ll still chill faster than in a fridge, though not as quickly as with the wet towel.

No freezer space? The next-best bet is to go traditional and submerge your wine in a mix of ice and water — remember, not just ice — adding a handful of salt to lower the freezing point and supercharge the chill. If you’re out and about or simply don’t have a fancy wine bucket, again, just think outside the box (or in it, if it were): utilize a clean sink basin, a portable cooler, a utility bucket, or even a bag-lined box. There’s always a way to MacGyver your way to cold wine bliss, no matter where you are and what you’re doing.

And of course, no matter how you do it, if there’s ice storage involved, always set a timer — there’s nothing sadder than a forgotten, frozen wine bottle.