How can a wine be velvety or rough? Discover the many textures that are part of enjoying wine.

You may read a wine review and see the descriptions, "soft" or "firm." These are textural impressions that a wine gives when you drink it. Your tongue is very sensitive and it feels the texture of the wine.

Think about the differences your mouth feels when you drink whole milk, 2% milk, or skim milk. You mouth feels the weight difference between the milks. It also feels the textural differences. Whole milk is much smoother than skim milk.

Some wines impart this same type of textural feeling. One will feel creamy in your mouth. Another will feel hard or coarse. Yet another wine will feel watery.

In white wines, the acid is responsible for these impressions. You will often hear that a good Chardonnay is "crisp." This is an adjective that indicates the firmness of the texture.

In red wines the tannins are responsible for the texture. Low levels of tannins will impart a nice soft feeling. Alcohol and unfermented sugar also contributes to this soft feeling.

Determining the different textures of wines will take practice. Who says learning new skills can't be fun?