The secret language of wine: what is mouthfeel?

Why do some wines feel silky, grippy, creamy or fresh, even before we begin to describe their aromas and flavours? Mouthfeel is one of the most important, and often overlooked, parts of the tasting experience.   When you start making tasting notes to record your wine tasting experiences, you'll probably find that they are littered with terms like “smooth”, “rounded” or perhaps “fresh” or “full-bodied”. These are all words that refer to what we call mouthfeel.  Mouthfeel, simply put, is the physical sensation that a wine (or other drink) creates in your mouth while you taste it. It encompasses all those other things that are not the aromas and flavours. And all those “other things” are really important in determining our experience of tasting a wine.  As so often in wine, once you tune into it, you’ll probably find that you are already perceiving the elements of mouthfeel. Learning how to assess mouthfeel is also a key part of your wine tasting practice, helping you determine a wine’s balance and, ultimately, quality.     Mouthfeel in wine  Mouthfeel is not just one thing, but a whole host of things, which can and do combine with each other, giving us an overall sensation of what it feels like to taste a particular wine. Some are innate to specific grape varieties, while others are the result of winemaking choices.   Let’s break the elements down - it’s quite a long list!  Let's kick off with the big three: alcohol, acidity and tannin. You’ll be familiar with them from your previous wine tasting experience, but let’s have a look at how they contribute to mouthfeel.  Alcohol: contributes warmth and weight and can enhance the perception of sweetness. Glycerol, which is also produced during fermentation, may contribute slightly to the wine’s texture and sense of fullness.  Acidity: brings a physical sensation of mouthwatering and a perception of freshness.  Tannins: are most noticeable in red wines, although they can also be found in skin-contact white wines and may be contributed by oak. Technically speaking, tannins increase the friction we experience in the mouth as they interact with the proteins in our saliva, preventing them from doing their usual lubrication duties, leading to that characteristic drying sensation. Tannins can be described as grippy, even astringent (think a cup of stewed tea); they can also be fine and smooth (especially in a mature wine) or sandpapery, gravelly or perhaps cotton woolly. A red wine with no tannin just wouldn’t taste (or more accurately feel) like wine.   Now let’s move on to elements that are still important to mouthfeel but are less obvious than those first three.  Sugar: we’re not focusing on the absolute sense of sweetness here, but its impact on the feel of the wine, where it brings weight and roundness. Think of the rounded palate feel of an off-dry wine versus the more linear feel of a bone-dry one.  Extract: the amount of colour and flavour compounds in a wine, which bring a sense of density. Compare a low-extract Pinot Noir with a high-extract Cabernet Sauvignon.   Carbon dioxide: this is a fun one. Carbon dioxide in sparkling wines adds to acidity (because it dissolves in water to form a weak acid) but it also brings a physical prickle with its own sense of freshness by physically stimulating your trigeminal nerve (one to Google). Carbonation stimulates the trigeminal system, creating a tingling or prickling sensation. Mustard and wasabi also stimulate this system, although through different chemical compounds and sensations.  Temperature: cold temperatures mute texture and sweetness. Warmer temperatures highlight alcohol and body. The current trend for chillable red wines has really tapped into this. Serving a red wine slightly chilled can make it feel fresher and reduce the prominence of alcohol. However, serving it too cold may make its tannins feel firmer or more astringent.  Body: really a mixture of a number of these elements, which we then interpret as body. Think about the sensation of drinking plain water vs a creamy milkshake: we instinctively know that one has a sense of fullness and weight. That’s what we mean when we talk about body.  Serving style: the glassware and amount of wine are important elements here. Experiment by pouring a small amount of wine into an ISO tasting glass, versus a more generous pour of the same wine in a larger glass with a wider bowl. The bigger pour in a wider glass will often feel more rounded and expressive.       Remember, many of these elements are found together in the same wine, so identifying mouthfeel is not a one-and-done exercise.  Here’s an example: a red wine from the southern Rhône with lots of fine, sandy tannins, quite high alcohol and extract, leading to full body and a long, warm finish. Contrast that with a classic Vinho Verde, with its low alcohol, high acidity and refreshing prickle of carbon dioxide and you can see that mouthfeel plays a huge role in how differently we experience these wines - without naming an aroma or flavour.    Not just wine  Mouthfeel is not just confined to wine: it’s a key part of understanding how we experience many types of drink - both with and without alcohol.   Spirits illustrate the influence of alcohol most clearly, as it’s such a key element of the drink. It brings warmth, body and a lengthy finish.  Mouthfeel is all-important for beer too: ales often have a rounded creaminess, contrasting with the refreshment provided by carbonation (carbon dioxide again) and the bitter grip of hops on the finish.  Sake tends to have lower acidity than wine, but other factors come into play. A higher proportion of rice polishing will result in a lighter, crisper feel, which can be accentuated by serving the sake chilled. Fermentation method and temperature can influence the aroma, flavour and texture of sake, but they do not determine its richness on their own. Serving sake warm can make its body, alcohol and savoury characteristics seem more pronounced.   Non-alcoholic drinks don’t miss out on mouthfeel either. Think about the prickly refreshment of an ice-cold coke – and compare it with the gloopy sweetness of room temperature, flat coke for a perfect illustration of the power of mouthfeel.  Mouthfeel is also one of the most challenging areas for no and low wines – which is at least in part due to the role of alcohol in shaping the mouthfeel of wines. Less or no alcohol also means we experience any tannins as more astringent. Conversely, sparkling teas have some success in mimicking the body of wines, thanks to their naturally occurring gentle tannins.    Why does mouthfeel matter? All the elements of mouthfeel build a wine's balance, quality and how refreshing it feels. It also plays a key role in understanding what will make for a good food match: wines with high acidity are good for cutting through fat; those with more tannin can be smoothed out by serving with a savoury, high-protein (often meaty) dish.  And, most importantly, mouthfeel is key to how we naturally express our personal preferences. How often do you hear things like, “I enjoy a full-bodied red” or “I like a really light-bodied, fresh rosé”? Conversely, who ever says “I really like my wines to taste of red cherries”? Many people instinctively reach for mouthfeel descriptors, with not an aroma or flavour in sight!      About the author Heather Dougherty DipWSET is a freelance wine educator, writer and judge based in Surrey, UK. She gained the WSET Diploma in 2005 and has since built a particular specialism in sparkling wines, becoming UK Champagne Ambassador in 2018 and achieving the Wine Scholar Guild Champagne Master Level with Highest Honours. Heather is an Advanced Cava Educator and a certified Rioja and Rhône educator, with a broad interest spanning many regions of France, Italy and Spain, as well as Washington State in the US. A past Chair of the Association of Wine Educators and a member of the Circle of Wine Writers, she is also a senior judge at the Decanter World Wine Awards. Her writing has appeared in Decanter magazine, Harpers, The Drinks Business and The Buyer, and Heather regularly leads tastings and educational events for both consumer and trade audiences