No-Fuss Guide · No. 10

What is tannin? That strong-black-tea feeling, explained

You've felt it: the sip grips your tongue and gums, like over-steeped black tea or an unripe persimmon. That's tannin. It's not a fault, it's not acidity and it's not alcohol. It's the backbone of red wine.

What it is, where it comes from

Tannins are natural compounds in the grape, concentrated in the skin, the seeds and the stems (the little stalk of the bunch), and also in the wood of the barrel. When the wine stays in contact with those parts during fermentation, the tannins pass into the liquid. That's why almost every red has tannin and almost no white does: white ferments without the skins. Seed tannin is the hardest: bitter and rough; skin tannin is softer and gives the body. That's why the winemaker takes care not to crush the seeds in the press.

A bunch of grapes, a grape cut in half and a barrel, with four numbers: skin, seed, stem and wood. — fig. 1Where tannin lives: 1 in the skin, 2 in the seed, 3 in the stem (the little stalk of the bunch) and 4 in the wood of the barrel.

How it feels

It's not a taste, it's texture: tannin reacts with the proteins in your saliva and your mouth loses its lubrication, hence that dry, rough, “grips-your-tongue” feeling. A wine can be dry (little sugar) and have little tannin, like a Pinot Noir; or have tannin to spare, like a young Tannat. One has nothing to do with the other. Mixing up tannin and dry is the most common mistake on the shelf.

A cup of black tea, an unripe persimmon and a glass of red wine, linked by “roughly equal” signs. — fig. 2The same grip: over-steeped black tea, an unripe persimmon and a young red.

Grapes with lots of tannin, and with little

Lots: Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, Syrah, young Malbec, Touriga Nacional;
Medium: Merlot, Tempranillo, Carmenère;
Little: Pinot Noir, Gamay, Grenache. Like your reds “soft”? Start here.

What tames tannin

Fatty food: the fat and protein in meat occupy the tannin before your tongue does. That's why churrasco (Brazilian barbecue) and Cabernet have been friends for centuries;
Time in the bottle: tannin binds into bigger molecules and drops to the bottom (the sediment in old wines). The wine turns “round”;
Air: half an hour in the glass, or decanting, helps young, closed wines;
Temperature: cold sharpens tannin. A tannic red served chilled turns harder; serve it at 16 to 18 °C.

A barbecue skewer with three pieces of fatty meat, next to a glass of red wine. — fig. 3Tannin tamed: the fat and protein in meat occupy the tannin before your tongue does.

How to read it on the label

The label rarely says “tannin”. Clues: “full-bodied”, “structured”, “powerful”, “for aging” signal high tannin; “light”, “soft”, “fruity”, “young” signal low. In the house wine search, every label comes with its body; and body goes hand in hand with tannin.

Like the grip? Some people love tannin, some run from it. Both are right; the house just helps you find your side.