To put it simply, there are two main purposes to sober up: one is to remove the wine dregs, and the other is to let the wine contact with the air to carry out a certain degree of oxidation, dispel the turbid taste, open the aroma and improve the taste.
Let's talk about the function of removing wine dregs first. Wine residue is the precipitation of substances in wine, and its essence is the combination of tartaric acid crystals, pigments and tannins in wine. Wine dregs often exist in aged wines and unfiltered wines before bottling, such as vintage port wines and natural wines.
When pouring wine, if you don't sober up, the wine residue can easily be poured into the cup with the wine liquid. Wine not only looks cloudy, but also has obvious graininess, which affects the taste experience.
So people often love and hate wine dregs. They loved it for a bottle of wine for so long, and they hated it for ruining the long-simmering taste. It is really a good choice to sober up before drinking if you want to drink fine wine but don't want to be influenced by wine dregs.
In addition to removing wine dregs, sobering up will also have a significant impact on the aroma and taste of wine. First of all, sobering up can dispel some turbid smells in wine. For example, the smell of rotten eggs, lighted matches, burnt rubber and cooked cabbage often appears in wine. These smells come from sulfur-containing compounds, which are very common in wine, making people sick and masking the aroma of fruits. And sober up can make it evaporate to some extent.
Not only that, many people also believe that wine is in contact with oxygen during the sober-up process and has undergone an oxidation reaction. This oxidation is especially obvious for some new wines with strong tannins. When these wines were first opened, the aroma and taste were tightly wrapped by tannins, which could not show their potential charm. In the process of sobering up, oxygen will make tannins softer, erase the roughness and bitterness in the taste, release hidden aroma, and even gradually develop more new aroma. As time goes by, wine unfolds like a piece of paper, just like when two people are familiar with each other, they put down their formality and vigilance, slowly open their hearts and become real friends.
How to sober up?
Sobering up is a knowledge, which depends on the type of wine (year, weight, grape variety, storage conditions, etc. ) and personal preferences, do not explain too much here; Usually, young dry red wine with heavy tannins takes a relatively long time to sober up, which can be opened 1-2 hours in advance, while 30 minutes in advance is enough for mature old wine; It is recommended to use a sobering up device to sober up. Theoretically, the bigger the abdomen, the shorter the hangover time.