WTN /Wine Advisor: Tannic Tannat

[Robin Garr]

Tannic Tannat

If you're looking for a benchmark wine to help you pin down that scratchy, mouth-drying black-tea astringency that wine tasters call "tannic," you'd be hard-pressed to find a more vivid example than the uncommon French grape that may actually take its name from the effect: Tannat.

Tannins, simply put, are complex organic compounds (known as "phenolics" in chemistry-speak) that occur naturally in grapeskins, seeds and stems and that impart a distinctly astringent (mouth-puckering) flavor in wine. A smaller amount of tannin may also be contributed by oak, particularly in wines aged in small, new oak barrels.

Because red wines are fermented with the grape skins while white wines usually are not, reds tend to be much more tannic than whites; and certain varieties are particularly tannic, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Nebbiolo, for example, and the less-familiar Tannat.

Tannins are considered desirable because their anti-oxidant properties help preserve wine in aging. Over time in the cellar with ageworthy wines, tannins undergo a gradual chemical change called polymerization; astringency fades and the wine's flavors take on a more mellow complexity.

Historically, many wines meant for aging - Bordeaux and Rhone reds in particular, and Vintage Port - were virtually undrinkable in youth because of their fierce astringency. In modern times, market forces and a demand for instant gratification has prompted changes in wine making that render even many of these big wines drinkable, if not necessarily at their best, soon after purchase.

The same is true even of Tannat, but its natural tannins remain so prominently puckery that the wine gives us a serious remembrance of times past. Virtually all varietal Tannat on the market comes from two places: The Southwestern French region called Madiran (which usually adds Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon to a Tannat-dominant blend); and Uruguay, a smallish South American country tucked between Brazil and Argentina, where 19th century Basque immigrants apparently introduced the grape and made it as much a trademark wine of the region as Malbec became in Argentina.

It's not an easy wine to find. Uruguay has only about 300 wineries growing only about 25,000 acres of vines, and few of them export. Today's featured wine is likely distributed only randomly around the U.S. and the world. If you want a taste of Tannat, though, if you can't find this wine, look for any Uruguayan Tannat - it's gaining a bit more visibility as producers seek an export market. French Madiran should also be represented with at least a few labels at wine shops in larger cities.

<table border="0" align="right" width="85"><tr><td><img src="http://www.wineloverspage.com/graphics1/donp0831.jpg" border="1" align="right"></td></tr></table>Bodega Carlos Pizzorno 2004 "Don Próspero" Región Canelón Chico Tannat ($14.99)

Inky blackish-purple, opaque. Plummy aromas add intriguing scents of grilled meat and red clay. Mouth-filling, chewy, good acidic backbone and - as you'd expect of Tannat - heavy (but palatable) tannins. Earthy and smoky notes blend with restrained fruit, plums and a hint of cranberry, tapering off gradually in a long finish. Definitely "rustic," but quite a complex and interesting wine. U.S. importer: Table 31 Imports LLC, Silverthorne, Colo. (Aug. 31, 2007)

<B>FOOD MATCH:</b> A wine as tannic as this <i>needs</i> rare beef or lamb to "tame" its tannic astringency, and I couldn't have asked for a better match than a locally grown and produced rib eye, pepper crusted and pan-seared medium-rare.

<B>VALUE:</B> No complaints in the middle teens, particularly if you enjoy the opportunity to add a less familiar country and grape to your life list.

<B>WHEN TO DRINK:</B> It can certainly be enjoyed now, particularly, as noted, with rare red meat. Still, its powerful tannins, reasonable fruit and acidic balance should see it through as much as a decade in a good cellar.

<B>WEB LINK:</B> Much of the importer's Website remains under construction, but you'll find a bit about Uruguay and its wines at this link:
http://www.table31imports.com/uruguay.html

<B>FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:</B>
Wine-Searcher.com comes up with only a few vendors for "Don Próspero" Tannat:
[url=http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/Don%2bProspero%2bTannat/-/-/USD/A?referring_site=WLP]http://www.wine-searcher.com/
find/Don%2bProspero%2bTannat/-/-/USD/A?referring_site=WLP[/url]
For further information, the importer invites inquires through a "contact us" page on the company Website,
http://www.table31imports.com/contactpage.html

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We had a favorite everyday drinker for many years called: Domaine du Mage, Vin de Pays des Cotes de Gascogne. It is an under $10 wine that is a blend of Tannat and Merlot! Sounds like the Alpha and the Omaga doesn't it? The way the folks at Domaine du Mage put it together the wine shows best sides of both grapes.

Unfortunately it is hard to find and haven't seen it in these parts for years. Wine-searcher shows one store in Minneapolis that carries the '04.

David Coffaro is bottling some Tannat this year - he gets it from the Lodi area.
Google finds a few hits on "Tannat Lodi CA".

Thanks for the note, Robin; it reminded me of a great workshop led by Randall Graham eight years ago in Boston at the Expo. He conducted a blending exercise, and his discussion of Tannat went pretty much like this:

Grahm said his hero was Patrick Ducournau, a winemaker from Madiran, France who owned a vineyard planted to Tannat. Grahm said: “Tannat produces a hard, astringent, bitter wine that only gets worse when you try to improve it. But what is a mother to do?”

What Ducournau did was think about tannins and decide that he could alter the tannin profiles by introducing oxygen. (Grahm said it was human nature to pick single elements out of the much bigger world, and then focus on those elements. He said he was reminded of a Far Side cartoon in which all of the oxen in a team going through Death Valley look at an ox’s stall by the side of the trail.)

Ducournau’s theory of tannin, as I understood it from Grahm, is generally as follows:

There are four types of tannins: hard, green, soft and dry. The fate of all hard, green and soft tannins is to become dry, to die, to become undrinkable. A winemaker seeks to soften tannins, and seeks to make them stay soft for a long time. Oxygen will make tannins move from the hard and green categories into the soft category, but oxygen will also oxidize the wine and make the soft tannins dry and die. On the other hand, removing oxygen [“reduction”] will create hydrogen sulfide and destroy the wine’s aroma. Seeking balance is one of the major challenges of all winemakers.

[Grahm got into a long discussion of Ducournau’s various techniques for softening tannins: polymerization (i.e. creating longer chains of tannins) and other chemical reactions. As he went on, he said the discussion had gotten “too geeky”. My technical notes are unclear, and they aren’t reproduced here. The essence of his remarks was that carefully controlling the introduction of oxygen into wine will soften tannins.]

Microbullage is the technique that Ducournau and Grahm use for this purpose. Bubbles of pure oxygen are released into the wine after fermentation is completed and until the wine is bottled. Some of the points Grahm made include:

- The bubbles and quantities are tiny; my notes show two milliliters per month [?].

- He uses pure oxygen because it is almost as cheap as atmospheric air and serves as a control

- The oxygen is bubbled into the bottom of the tanks through devices something like the aerators in a fish tank, but the bubbles are much smaller.

- The wine must be at least two meters deep so that all of the oxygen is absorbed before it reaches the surface.

- There is no reason to add oxygen during fermentation; the lees are extraordinary oxygen scavengers and no oxygen can be detected in the fermenting wine.

Grahm emphasized that over the centuries cellar men had used other techniques to do the same thing; elevage has been the most common technique. Oxygen will permeate wood and the bung areas in barrels, and the oxygen will be absorbed by the wine. Cellar men use larger barrels for wines with lots of softer tannins because there is relatively less wood in contact with the wine; they use smaller barrels for wines with harder or greener tannins because there is relatively more wood in contact with the wine.

Grahm’s approach to the problem had been different than Ducournau’s as a conceptual matter. He got interested in acupuncture and the concept of vitality or Xi [pronounced “ghee”]. We all have X; too much when we are young so we have to find ways to control its release; too little as we age so we have to find ways to protect it; none at all and we die.

Wine is like that. Some wines have lots of Xi; others have much less. The enemy of XI in wine is oxygen: wine with the ability to absorb more oxygen will have a longer life. Grahm said he thinks of wine as being on a journey: beginning, middle and end. Most of the focus is on fermentation at the beginning of a wine’s life, because that is an exciting period, like the culmination of the sex act. Ducournau stops his efforts to control oxygen when the wine is bottled, but Grahm said his goal is to make wine immortal.

One must protect the wine’s Xi after it is bottled, and the way to do that is by keeping lees in the bottled wine. (Lees are the yeast bodies left after fermentation.) Reason: lees are oxygen scavengers and will remove oxygen from the wine and protect the soft tannins. Keeping lees in the wine present several problems, but Grahm said he believed he could solve them: “This is the secret of immortal life. I could have been an alchemist during the Middle Ages, and I can be one now. Of course, this is economically ruinous. But we have no choice.”

I've meant to try Ducournau's wines, or another Tannat, ever since, but my To Try List has been too massive. You've encouraged me to try again. Thanks.

Our friend / rare-occasion poster Neil Glaser makes a Tannat at Horton Vineyards--in Virginia, of all places.

According to a label on Horton's Cab Franc I had in December, 1998, Clinton, Horton claims to be the first in the US to use Tannat as a blending wine. From my wine diary:


1994 Horton Vineyards Cabernet Franc Orange County Virginia. $6.00 a glass at Endless Vine. Label: aromas of violets and spicy oak; robust, first in U.S. to use Tannat as blending wine. Firm with spicy finish. Deep red color; good violet, fruit and spice aromas; intense fruit taste with strong, but well balanced tannins; full mouth feel; much better with food, a bit rustic and overwhelming; medium finish with several spice notes. Interesting. 3*.

My guess is that this is not well founded; the Statistical report / California. State Board of Agriculture - Page 143 1888 -- reports that Tannat was being grown then in California.

Still, interesting that Horton would grow Tannat.

Regards, Bob

If Virginia surprises you, check out Tiger Mountain Vineyards in the mountains of Georgia (state, not country). They bottle it varietally.

http://www.tigerwine.com/#

Fascinating, Carl. Thanks for the info. I've heard some interesting things about Tiger Mountain Vineyards. Tom Stevenson gave them a very positive review as an up and coming winery two years ago.

Tough to get their wines in New Jersey, Only Georgia retailers are listed on Wine Searcher Pro -- I'll have to try harder, I guess.

Tannat is being grown in the Sierra Foothills by a few growers and winemakers. I planted an acre in my vineyard in Fiddletown, Amador County, this year. I've heard good things about the wine that's being made from it in the foothills.

Welcome, Elizabeth. That's very interesting.

I hope you'll stick around and discuss wine with us.

Regards, Bob

We had a favorite everyday drinker for many years called: Domaine du Mage, Vin de Pays des Cotes de Gascogne. It is an under $10 wine that is a blend of Tannat and Merlot! Sounds like the Alpha and the Omaga doesn't it? The way the folks at Domaine du Mage put it together the wine shows best sides of both grapes.

Unfortunately it is hard to find and haven't seen it in these parts for years. Wine-searcher shows one store in Minneapolis that carries the '04.

Wildman was bringing the du Mage in for a while (still are?) but I haven't seen it for years. The last vintage I've tasted was the 2000 and I wasn't impressed. Laplace makes a fine gascogne rouge called Aramis for the same price ($9) that I really like (50%tannat, 25% Cab Sauv, 25% Cab Franc) and I just tasted the 2004 Ode D'Aydie Madiran from the producer -wonderful. I've had my share of uraguayan Tannat and applaud the effort, but none have yet stuck the right chord with me.

I've had just a few Uruguayan Tannats but always found Madiran to be far and above more interesting. Tannat ranks not far behind Pinotage on my list of favourite vinifera reds.

I wish some winery would plant Tannat in Ontario; it might make for a really nice co-fermenting component for other grapes that aren't quite as tannic. A Gamay-Tannat blend might be interesting.

Personally if I ever had access to Tannat, I would make it the old fashioned way with full skin contact during primary and absolutely no micro-oxygenation, and age it for a year or two in some neutral oak.

Paul,

Would it not be impossible to ripen tannat in Ontario? I imagine tannat not picked at near opimtimal maturity would be rather like drinking a shotgun blast.

Great question, Bill - unfortunately I don't know the answer. I consider Cabernet Sauvignon a very marginal choice for Ontario, yet it is grown in abundance and only makes good wine when cropping is really limited, and then I would say only in the better years. Does Tannat ripen later than Cab Sauv? I'm curious.

Paul, here's one answer from Tablas Creek:

"In the vineyard, Tannat is one of the easiest varietals to grow. It is late ripening, frost hardy and a solid producer. Unlike other varietals (such as Grenache and Syrah), it is not prone to overproduction, and we do not have to thin the shoots to keep production down. Its berries have thick skins, which make it resistant to powdery mildew and botrytis. The sole difficulty with growing Tannat is its thick stems, which cling tightly to the berries and can be difficult to remove at harvest.

Tannat is quite tannic (due in part to the berries’ thick skins), and we ferment it in open-top tanks to expose the juice to more oxygen and soften the tannins."

Interesting article, actually, on the history of the grape in the US.

http://www.tablascreek.com/tannat.html