What are wine tannins?

Wine tannins come from the grape’s skins, stems and seeds. Sometimes winemakers add oak chips to the wine during the winemaking process, to flavor and age the wine. When wine is stored in barrels, the wine will also pick up tannins from the oak. The longer the juice is in contact with the skins, stems, seeds, oak chips and barrels, the higher the tannins will be in the wine. A wine with high tannins can be bitter and astringent.

How do you know if wine has tannins?

Wine with tannins give a lingering, dry feeling in your mouth, similar to black tea, and can taste bitter. Tannins are often confused with the term “dry” because they dry your mouth out.

What do tannins in wine taste like?

Similar to black tea. As an experiment, steep a black tea bag. Tannins will get stronger the longer you let the tea bag steep.

Why are there tannins in wine?

Tannins are naturally occurring because they come from grape skins, stems and seeds. Tannins are higher in grapes that have thick skins (like Cabernet Sauvignon) and are aged in oak barrels.

Are there wines that have more tannins than others?

Yes. Thick skinned grapes that are aged in wood have higher tannins than thin skinned grapes aged in concrete or stainless steel.

Examples of High Tannin wines:

If you don’t like wines that give you a puckery sensation, drink wines that are thin skinned, and are not aged in wood.

Examples of Low Tannin wines: