"closed" wines

[Innkeeper]

A wine with strong tannins can be drinkable young because the fresh fruit overcomes the harshness of the tannin. After the fruit fades, the wine is "closed", while other ingredients in the wine, primarily acid, work on the tannin. Once the tannins are tamed, the wine is "open" again.

This process can be accelerated by exposing the wine to oxygen. This is why you see postings where a member will post something like, " I let it set for 45 minutes before drinking", or "it finally opened after three hours." Even faster opening can be accomplished by swirling the wine glass. You see this frequently in winery tasting rooms were the attendants will slosh their monsters all over the place, trying to open them up for you.