A Perfect Blend Is In The Bottle

Often confused with a high concentration of alcohol, a wine’s acidity is what gives it sharpness – high acidity wines are often tart and zesty, and may feel lighter-bodied as they come across as ‘spritzy’. A ‘well-balanced’ wine is so called as it has acidity, sweetness and tannin in perfect harmony.

How can you identify acidity? You’ll feel a tingling sensation on the sides of your tongue, which may feel rough if you rub it along the roof of your mouth. Your mouth will also feel extra wet, and you might find yourself ‘gleeking’ – the term given to inadvertently spraying saliva while yawning!

A wine high in tannin is often mistakenly labelled as a dry wine, because tannin has a drying effect on the mouth. Frequently described as astringent, tannin is the presence of phenolic compounds that add bitterness to a wine – despite these characteristics, though, tannin adds balance and structure, and helps wine last longer. A lot of research suggests the tannin in red wine is good for your health, too.

It’s usually quickly apparent if a wine has high tannin levels, as it will make your tongue feel dry and can leave a lingering bitter feeling in your mouth. A high-tannin red is a great accompaniment to red meat, though – the tannins work to help break down meat proteins, thus exacerbating their flavour profile even further.

Alcohol levels will have the biggest impact on a wine’s character, body and classification. While the average wine contains around 11%-13% alcohol by volume (ABV), it’s not uncommon for wines to have as little as 5.5%, or as much as 20%.

Everyone tastes alcohol differently. Bitter, sweet, spicy, oily, and sometimes all at once – a lot of our perception of alcohol is actually influenced by genetics. Higher alcohol wines tend to taste bolder and oilier, while lower-alcohol wines feel lighter. It’s almost universally-agreed, however, that alcohol wields a warming sensation at the back of the mouths and throat.