I chilled several bottles of fine Sauternes (the 2003 Lafaurie-Peyraguey) for a dinner party and then didn't open all of the bottles. Will it harm the wine to take it out of the refrigerator and put it back in the wine cellar for further aging? Our cellar temp is 57-60.

No. It will be fine.

I do this all the time to champagne, whites, sauternes. No big deal.

Wine is nowhere near as fragile as legend would have us think. Constant shifts in temperature are not good, but that is over a period of very long time. Shifting it between the refrigerator and the cellar every day for a week won't affect the wine in the least.

Should these types of wines be served chilled?
To me they taste better at room temperature (when they are balanced and well made).

Chilled is the general way of drinking liquorous wines.
But if you have tried it both ways and you prefer them at room temperature you won't get shot (except maybe in a few backward states of the union, unknown to me).

True is that the warmer wine will reveal more aroma's and may show more complexity of taste. But, as you say, they need to be well balanced or the will fall flat on their bellies.

Cold is an anesthetic. Serving good wine too cold is a common mistake.

quote:

Cold is an anesthetic. Serving good wine too cold is a common mistake.

So true. We all complain about red wine being served too warm at retaurants. I have had just as many issues (if not more) with white wine being served freezing beer cold - and then they try to shove it in an ice bucket to boot. I have to tell them "it's plenty cold enough - please leave it on the table."

I am the opposite with cheap white wine though - freeze the $hit out of it so I don't taste it.