Red wine and steak have a legendary reputation as a magical pair, but the reason for their great teamwork lies more in chemistry than culinary tradition. According to an article in the Daily Mail, there's solid science behind the succulence: The flavor of the fat in steak gets released by the tannins in red wine, and in exchange, the fat cuts down the red wine's astringency and allows more of its fruity flavor to come through. In other words, the two don't just go well together: They "work" together, with each adding something to the other. "What you end up with is the tannin in the wine softening the steak and the fat in the steak softening the wine," Graffigna Wines' Federico Lleonart told the publication. Although the molecules known as tannins are also present in white wine, they are more prevalent in red because the grapes used for red wines are typically fermented with their skin and seeds intact. And for what it's worth, the reason white wine goes better with fish is because white wine tends to be more acidic, which allows it to cut the "fishiness" of seafood.
Uncorking the facts about wine:
- Italy is the world's leading wine producer, followed by France and Spain.
- There are approximately 10,000 varieties of grapes used to make wine throughout the world.
- While European wines are named for where they come from, wines from the rest of the world are named for the grapes they use.