Alcoholic beverages are plentiful and varied. There are so many different techniques that you can use to achieve the optimal flavor for your drink! Some drinks use a mixture of alcoholic drinks and mixers, while others go through a more rigorous process to achieve the desired effect. When it comes to wine, the latter is true. Many wines are aged in barrels to achieve a desired taste. But, why is this the case, and how much does it really affect the taste? We break it down for you below!
The Process
So, how do people age their wine? Typically, the wines are aged in barrels at temperatures in the low to mid 50s in Fahrenheit to prevent it from oxidizing. But, what actually happens during this process? Wines are made with a natural preservative called tannins, which can help keep certain wines drinkable for upwards of 40 years! The only problem with tannins is that in their early stages, they give wine a bitter taste. When these tannins are aged, the flavor that they produce changes to become much sweeter. So, aging a wine is good because it helps the tannins develop a more desirable taste.
Is It Effective For All Wines?
The short answer to this question is actually no! A majority of the wines that are produced and sold in America are designed to have a great taste from the moment they hit the shelves. In addition, aging the wine is far more effective on white wines than red wines. White wines contain more tannins than red wines, meaning that they’ll get more benefit from being aged than red wines. Before you decide to age a bottle of wine, pay close attention to what kind it is. That could help you determine whether it’s worth it!
Other Effects Of Aging
We’ve talked at length about the way aging wine affects its taste, but what about its look? The most obvious change that you’ll notice when you age wine is a change in its color. The change will be more noticeable depending on the tannins in the wine, which enrich the color of white wines and diminish the color of reds. It may be a good way to tell if a wine has been aged enough!
Wine at Trattoria Il Panino
It wouldn’t be a trattoria without a luxurious selection of wine to complement the food! At Trattoria Il Panino, we sport a fantastic balance of Italian cuisines and wines that will satisfy anyone’s palette. To experience it for yourself, make a reservation with us today!