Have you ever tasted a red wine and it taste bitter or strong to you? Tannins. That is the substance in red wine that causes the bitter taste. Tannins are also the substance that makes a properly aged wine taste great. Tannins is a grapevine's way of protecting itself from predators. The substance is found in the stem, skin, and seeds of the plant. Tannins in the stem and skin can discourage insects and animals from eating the plant. Animals that do break the skin of the grape and get to the sweet pulp get a bitter surprise when they bite into the seed.
But tannins are important because they give wine its color, smell, and taste. Red wine is better with age because the tannins need time to break down the premature wine to smoothen it. Tannins allow some red wines to age for years before they reach their peak taste point. White wines do not much tannins and are usually drank shortly are they become wine. In fact, white wine loses it flavor over time because it lacks tannins.
So, the next time you taste a little bitterness in your red wine, it is just the tannins. Swirl your wine glass to aerate the red wine to release those tannins into the air. That will smoothen your drink.
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