How Red Wine Is Made
Red wine's colour, tannin, and structure all come from one thing: the grape skins. Understanding how skin contact works explains everything else about how red wine is made.
· 7 min read
Key takeaways
- Red wine gets its colour and tannin from grape skins — the juice of even red grapes is pale without skin contact.
- Maceration (skin contact during fermentation) extracts colour, tannin, and flavour compounds. The length and style of maceration is the most important variable in red winemaking.
- Malolactic fermentation ('the second fermentation') converts sharp malic acid to softer lactic acid — it's standard for most reds and gives them their rounded, creamy quality.
- Oak ageing adds vanilla and spice notes, helps stabilise colour, and gradually introduces oxygen that softens tannins.
Frequently asked questions
- Why do red wines have tannins but whites don't?
- Tannins come from grape skins and seeds. White wine is pressed away from the skins almost immediately — very little tannin is extracted. Red wine stays in contact with the skins for days or weeks. Orange wine (white grapes with skin contact) sits between the two.
- What makes a red wine 'velvety' or 'silky'?
- These describe tannin texture. Young tannins feel grippy and astringent; as wine ages, tannins polymerise and become finer-grained. Silky tannins can also result from gentle extraction and the natural character of grapes like Pinot Noir and Merlot.
- Why does some red wine have sediment?
- Sediment is mainly precipitated tannins and tartrate crystals — natural and harmless. In older wines it's a sign of age; in younger wines it indicates minimal filtration. Decant before serving to leave sediment behind.
- What is carbonic maceration?
- Whole, uncrushed grape bunches ferment inside a CO2-rich environment — fermentation begins inside the intact berry. The result is a light, fruity wine with soft tannins. Beaujolais Nouveau is the most famous example.
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