Why wine teeth happen — but not to everyone (2024)

There are many difficult things about socializing with others, but one of the most pressing is the matter of “wine teeth.” Also known as “wine mouth,” this is the phenomenon whereby you realize that the red wine you have been drinking has given your teeth a distinctly purple cast, reminiscent of a vampire post-feeding.

But the cruel twist is that, like musical ability or inherited wealth, wine teeth are not distributed equally among the population. Some people are forever plagued by wine teeth — “I look like a cannibal with poor hygiene when I drink red wine!” lamented one Vox staffer who will remain anonymous — while others seem to emerge from the drinking experience unscathed.

I had assumed it had to do with moral virtue, the way you can tell if someone is a witch based on whether they float or sink. But according to Dr. Uchenna Akosa, a dentist and head of faculty practice at Rutgers School of Dental Medicine, the answer is much simpler. There are two factors that determine the severity of wine teeth: the nature of red wine and the particularities of your tooth enamel.

Red wine is red because of anthocyanins, the red pigment in grapes. It is also high in tannins, which lend it a delicious astringency, but — in an unfortunate turn — help that pigment bind to your teeth. And your teeth are vulnerable at this moment because of a third factor: acid. Red wine is acidic, and this acidity etches your enamel, making it more porous, and making it easier for the stain to stick, Akosa says. White wine is acidic, too — even more acidic than red, in fact — but it doesn’t stain your teeth, because ... it’s white.

But not all teeth are the same. Plaque, for example, can cause the appearance of staining, which is why Akosa advises that in an ideal world, you’d brush your teeth 30 minutes before drinking. Because that is not always possible, she recommends regular dental cleanings.

Does that mean wine-stained teeth are indicative of a hygiene issue? No. Or at least, likely not. There’s also genetics to consider. “Maybe one person is more prone to plaque buildup and the other isn’t,” Akosa says. “Maybe one person has stronger enamel and the other doesn’t.” It’s true that the strength of your enamel depends, in part, on general health and hygiene, but it’s also true that there’s only so much you can do about it — especially once you’re older. “Like someone in their 40s,” she tells me. “If the enamel is not strong by that time, it’s already too late.” This is grim, but also heartening; it is always reassuring to learn misfortune might not be your fault.

Still, there are steps one can take to mitigate indignity: brush before, but not right after — toothpaste, Akosa warns, will only cause more etching. Don’t drink white wine before red wine, since the extra acid in the white will exacerbate the staining.

But what about the wine itself, I wanted to know? Was it possible that if I drink a glass of one red, and you drink a glass of another, our teeth might stain differently not because of who we are but because of what we sipped?

Yes.

The longer answer requires a brief foray into the mechanics of winemaking. Different grape varietals — a pinot noir grape, a merlot grape — are different colors, with skins of different thicknesses, explains Cha McCoy, a very patient sommelier based in New York City. Dark, thick-skinned grapes tend to produce darker, fuller-bodied wines than their more delicate counterparts.

Is it that straightforward? No, of course not, this is wine we’re talking about; the nuances are endless, we could be here for the rest of our short lives. In addition to the particulars of the grape, there is the question of how exactly the wine is made. Reds get their color not from the juice itself — grape flesh itself is almost always white — but from how long the juice sat in contact with the skins: the longer, the darker.

“I like to say the darker the wine, the darker the teeth,” Julia Coney, a wine writer based in Washington, DC, tells me. A pinot noir, for example — less tannic, and less physically dark than a soulful cabernet — is also likely to be less staining. “If I think of cabernets, I’m going to have purple teeth at night. Malbec, I’m going to have purple teeth.” So if you are trying to avoid the telltale mulberry stain, you might be better off with a nice pinot noir, or an elegant gamay.

Because it is a violation of the social contract — and because whoever is trying to assist you will likely be confused — McCoy recommends not asking your local wine store for “a non-staining red.” Instead, ask for something with “a lighter body,” she says. “That’s a quick, easy way, without confusing the wine retailer.”

But sometimes that is not what you want, and that is okay. According to Coney, the solution is simple: damp paper towels. “Cut up a white paper towel and just carry the strips in your purse or pocket. And when you go to the bathroom, just wipe off the film [on your teeth]. It helps tremendously,” she says, pointing out that every layer you’re not wiping off just stays there, getting redder and redder, drink after drink.

In conclusion, it is possible your clear-mouthed companion has better and stronger enamel than you. It is also possible they just have paper towels.