Tannin is a French wine term, actually coming from an old German word (Tanna, which means oak or fir tree).  It is a natural biomolecule contained in grapes, as well as in tree barks, leaves, roots or seeds.  It has been used for centuries by tanners to process animal skins into leather.

Grape's tannins are contained in the skin and seeds. During the fermentation period of red wines, the grape juice is left in contact with the skin to extract color and phenolic components which will bring astringency and acidity to the wine, which will help in the ageing of the wines.

Wineof ‘entry-level’ prices (below RM55) are made with grapes from young vines, producing a fair volume. The tannin content of these wines will not be very high – so they can and should be enjoyed early as they won’t evolve with time.  On the other side, more premium reds come from old vines, giving low volume of grapes, but that are rich with tannins.  The extracting of those tannings will take longer. The wine is then aged in oak barrels, which will concentrate the tannins even more, so they would need time to settle in the bottle and arrive at a more ‘friendly’ level. This can go from a few months to over a decade, depending on the wine (usually the more expensive it is, the more it has been in contact with oak, and the longer it will require).

Some grapes varietals naturally have a higher content of tannins than others (e.g. Cabernet Sauvignon or Shiraz compared to Pinot Noir), so they would easily have a fuller body.  Tannins are also what gives you dark teeth if you have a few glasses! Technically, white wine does not have tannins, as the grapes are pressed directly, without maceration time.  

Tannins are one of the components that contribute to a wine's body. More on that here. If you like full bodied wines, check out these wines. 

Last week, we covered what Botrytis actually is and how this fungus helps create grapes that are perfect for sweet wines. Now let's talk about how these wines are actually made.

As explained in last week's Wine 101, the fungus helps create an environment that allows the grapes to shrivel and concentrate its sugar content. During the fermentation of these grapes, there is so much sugar that the yeast cannot ‘eat’ all the sugar, and gets ‘killed’ by the alcohol when it reaches a certain point, hence giving you a sweet wine with a fair amount of alcohol.

 It also adds flavor components to the wine, which characteristic aromas of honey, beeswax or ginger. The color will usually be a deep shiny gold and offer luscious, addictive aromas, very easily recognizable. Because of the dehydration and the sensitivity of the grapes at that time (you can lose all your production if it rains a few days before harvest), the price of these wines can sometime go quite high. This is why it often comes in a half bottle. It seems cheaper, but also, it is hard to drink many glasses of these sweet wines.

Mostly white grapes are used, with a few having a certain affinity for the fungus: Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris or Muscadelle. The best ones you would find come from the Bordeaux region, especially from the villages around Sauternes, beside the Garonne River like our new arrival. It’s a stunner! You can also find great ones from Alsace in France, Germany (for Spätlese level and above), Hungary (and its famous Tokaji wines), or also Australia, which has a long history with sweet wines.

Botrytis wines can be drunk as a pre-dinner drink or with dessert. A little tip for matching sweet wines and desserts: always go with the same color for both – meaning that you should try to pair fruit-based desserts with yellow wines like botrytis wines, and pair chocolate desserts with red sweet wines, like Port or Maury. Meanwhile, the best pairing to goes with a Noble wine? Go French and try this match made in heaven with Foie Gras!

So with centuries of practice, winemakers have managed to turn around this pesky situation to their advantage, managing to create liquid gold from hideous, moldy, ugly-looking shriveled grapes!

Botrytis Cinerea (also known as Noble Rot) is a fungus which can affect many plants and fruits (strawberries, for example, are very sensitive to it). However, it is predominantly ‘used’ in winemaking. Winemakers dread seeing this disease appear in their vineyards, but have learned how to turn it around and use it, on specific occasions, to create marvelous wines. If winemakers spot it in their vineyards which they do not want to use for sweet wines, it will trigger the beginning of the harvest as soon as possible, to limit the effect.

Botrytis Cinerea needs specific environmental conditions to grow in a vineyard. It usually starts developing from early September through October, when the weather has cooled down. The ‘best’ (or worst if you do not want to see it on vineyard) conditions for its development will include cool nights and morning, which bring fog that will deposit a very thin layer of water on the grapes. This is followed by hot sunny days, which will allow the fungus – naturally present in the atmosphere at that time of the year - to develop.

If the weather stays too humid in day time, the fungus will turn into ‘Grey Rot’, which develops very differently, and the grapes won’t be able to be used. The effect caused by the Botrytis Cinerea? It attacks bunches, creating a cover of mold, which actually dehydrates the grapes causing them to shrivel up. By removing the water, it concentrates the sugar contents, which results in intense, viscous and syrupy wines.

So yes, it is indeed a fungus that helps make these lovely sweet wines though not added to it. In the next Wine 101, I'll talk more about the how the wines are made and their flavors as well as food pairing suggestions!