Do white wines also contain tannins?
The answer is undoubtedly yes. In fact, all wines contain tannins, but the amount of tannins varies. The tannins in wine come mainly from the skins, stems and seeds of the grapes, which explains why red wines have higher tannin content than white wines. The most important difference between red and white wines is the maceration step. In white wines, the juice only comes into contact with the skins for a short period of time, whereas in red wines, the skins are macerated for a much longer period of time. In red wines, the winemaker brings the must into full contact with the skins, stems and seeds in order to extract enough tannins and phenols. As a result, the tannin content of white wines is much lower than that of red wines.
Of course, there is another substance called barrel tannin. This tannin can be extracted from oak barrels, as well as from red and white wines during barrel aging or ageing. The tannins extracted from oak barrels are much less than those extracted from the skins of the fruit. Therefore, even white wines aged in oak barrels do not contain more tannins than many red wines.
Another exception is orange wine. Of course, orange wine is not made from orange juice. Orange wine is actually a white wine made in the same way that red wine is made. When making orange wine, the winemaker brings the juice of the grapes into contact with the skins so that the juice can extract certain pigments that turn the juice copper-orange in color. As a result, orange wines are more tannic than other white wines.
