Optimizing Tannins in Wine

There’s a nice article published in The Scientist on the science involved in growing wines. Thanks to science, Californian wines can now rival with the old world wines, having discovered the factors leading to optimum amount of tannins in wine. Aside from imparting flavor, texture and body to wines, tannins are also considered to be molecules responsible for the medicinal properties of wines.

Tannins are the astringent plant polyphenols that bind and precipitate proteins. Botanists describe them as defensive compounds that protect plants from bacteria and fungi and deter herbivores through their astringency and their interference with digestion. [snip] Medical researchers are focused on the therapeutic potential of tannins, including recent work showing that the phenolic compounds in red wine decrease the risk of atherosclerotic disease.

Read the full feature article from The Scientist: Taming tannins, Wine science and the quest for texture.