Why Don't We Talk About Tannins In White Wine?

Tannins in a wine come from the skins of the grape, and also the stems if they’re included before, during, or after fermentation. Understanding tannins is integral to understanding red wine, the different black grape varieties, and the quality of the wine. In a cooler climate, tannins can be green, almost underripe, in a warmer climate ripe and soft. The tannic structure of a red wine can be firm, grainy, gripping, chewy, mouth-coating. The tannins of Nebbiolo define the wine (among other features), just as they help distinguish Merlot from Cabernet Sauvignon.

But tannins in white wines are rarely, if ever, mentioned. There’s a simple reason for this: white wine is made in a very different way from red wine. The grapes are gently pressed and there is far less impact from the skins. White wine is all about expressing the freshness of the grape variety, rather than being heavy and, well, tannic. Which is why some people prefer white wine to red, and vice versa.

That describes, for example, Pinot Grigio but not oaked Chardonnay. Many white wines have tannins through skin contact. Even if the skin contact is only 24 hours, the skins of the grapes are influencing the structure of the wine. Otherwise, why keep the juice in contact with the skins? New oak also adds tannins to a white wine; not tannins from the grape, but tannins nonetheless. So why don’t we talk about tannins when describing a white wine?

Minerality is a dirty word in describing a wine: it’s a nebulous term without a specific meaning because minerals don’t actually taste of anything. What minerality arguably refers to is a combination of acidity and tannin, but we’re not allowed to talk about tannin in white wine. That lean, chewy nature to a white wine is acidity; that grainy quality is tannin.

I just tasted a white Pinot Noir from Oregon, and it naturally made me think of tannins because Pinot Noir is a black grape variety. It also made me think of other white wines I’ve been tasting recently about which I consistently mention a tannic quality in my tasting notes: Verdicchio, Grechetto, Fiano. Maybe that’s an Italian theme, but also Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and even Riesling I’ve tasted have had a grainy tannic texture that comes from short skin contact.

The tannins are naturally different from red wine. But they are present, and are maybe a better way of describing a white wine than the word minerality. Chardonnay is perhaps the most obvious example: tannins come from the new oak that the variety is often aged in. The new oak provides a grainy texture, but even wines made without any new oak have a tannic structure. Brief skin contact is a common winemaking element—especially for Sauvignon Blanc—that’s central to the style of the wine but that tannic grip is rarely talked about..

Mentioning tannins in a white wine is taboo. “Oh my God, this white wine is so tannic” is something no one ever says. It’s clearly a different structural profile from Barolo, but in many white wines tannins are a substantial part of their quality. So let’s just say: this white wine has tannins and it’s fantastic.