'Naked' wines defined

BUZZ:

HEY, Marnie. I was at the state store the other day and saw a whole stack of "naked" wines. Does that mean the winemakers are undressed when they stomp on the grapes?

Marnie: No, silly. "Naked" is a tongue-in-cheek term vintners use to describe wines that taste only of pure grapes, with no oak in their flavor. You might also see similar wines called "unwooded" or "unoaked."

Buzz: Say what? Does that mean most wines are tree-flavored?

Marnie: That depends on the kind of wine. There are many styles that aren't given oak-barrel treatment - mostly whites like Riesling, pinot grigio and sauvignon blanc. These wines taste better younger and fresher, and don't need the toasty flavor or texture enrichment that aging in oak barrels provide. But others, like chardonnay and almost all red wines, benefit so much from barrels that we've come to think of their oaky versions as normal. When a winemaker decides to skip the oak to make a lighter, brighter version, they need a way to let the consumer know - hence the new wave of "naked" wines.

Buzz: So "naked" means lighter? At the beach, people always look heavier to me without their clothes on.

Marnie: Often lighter, yes, but a better word might be "fresher." Fermenting wine in stainless steel protects it from air and preserves the vibrant flavor and tang of fresh grapes. Oak barrels allow the wine to "breathe" in a way that speeds up the aging process, changing the wine's flavor and boosting its tactile richness. If the barrels are also "new," the distinctive toasty scent of the oak is infused into the wine, giving it a flavor similar to dessert spices, vanilla or browned butter.

Buzz: Sounds delicious. Why skip the oak, then?

Marnie: There are a couple reasons. First, oak treatment adds to a wine's cost in many ways, because you need to factor in the cost of the barrels and the extra time needed for aging. Second, there are many people who avoid oaky wines because they prefer younger and fresher-tasting wines.

Buzz: Well, next time I go to the state store, I'll get naked.

Marnie: I wish you hadn't said that.