Hi
I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
suggested she has a glass a day.
Ta
Jeff

On Fri, 26 Nov 2010 06:02:44 -0800 (PST), Jeffrey >
wrote:

> Hi
> I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> suggested she has a glass a day.



There are lots of reds with little or no tannins. Here's one
recommendation: Beaujolais.

--
Ken Blake

Jeffrey > writes:

> Hi
> I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> suggested she has a glass a day.

Pinot noir? (From Oregon's Willamette Valley, or from the Russian
River Valle in CA, or from Burgundy, of course.)

Also Tempranillo can be relatively low tannin.

Mike Tommasi > writes:

> On 26/11/2010 18:50, Doug Anderson wrote:
> >
> > Pinot noir? (From Oregon's Willamette Valley, or from the Russian
> > River Valle in CA, or from Burgundy, of course.)
>
> Pinot Noir might have lighter colour, but surely not low tannin...?

I'm sure it depends on the growing and the winemaking (at the very
least) but my mouth tells me that a lot of the pinots that I drink
are lower in tannins than wines like cabs or syrahs. (And certainly
than pinotage!)

Plenty of acidity, but not so much tannin.

But most of the pinots I drink are from Oregon, and occasionally
Northern California. So I shouldn't have offered an opinion on
Burgundy perhaps - maybe it is different there.

And I'm not including wines made from obviously unripe grapes either.

On 11/26/2010 03:02 PM, Jeffrey wrote:
> Hi
> I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> suggested she has a glass a day.
> Ta
> Jeff

Hi Jeff,

We've been through the situation. Of course the first thing is,
congrats on getting to year 4 after the treatment without needing more
chemo.

It's common for chemo to throw of the "taster." Especially if it
involves Taxol or one of the other products with a high occurrence of
peripheral neuropathy. This happened to my wife Adele also. In Adele's
case things gradually came back, but not to the palate she had before,
and sometimes she'll say a good bottle tastes off or oxidized, but a
little later it seems fine.

Really, if she doesn't currently care for red wine, it would be better
to stick to fruit juice or some other drink. Or white or pink. If red
was a pleasure before, it may take more time to come back, or never come
back. Gamay-based wines like Beaujolais might be worth a try, or just
don't sweat it. A small loss considering the alternatives, right?

cheers,

-E

On Nov 26, 9:02*am, Jeffrey > wrote:
> Hi
> I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> suggested she has a glass a day.
> Ta
> Jeff

I don't know where you are, but in some parts of the US there are
winemakers using a hybrid grape called Chambourcin. It has no tannins
at all, in my experience.

Dan-O

On Nov 27, 12:59*pm, Dan the Man > wrote:
> On Nov 26, 9:02*am, Jeffrey > wrote:
>
> > Hi
> > I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> > My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> > now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> > mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> > glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> > have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> > she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> > suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> > suggested she has a glass a day.
> > Ta
> > Jeff
>
> I don't know where you are, but in some parts of the US there are
> winemakers using a hybrid grape called Chambourcin. It has no tannins
> at all, in my experience.
>
> Dan-O

Besides Gamay (Beaujolais), Barbera tends to be fairly low tannin.
Tempranillo and Sangiovese as a rule are less tannic than say Cabernet
or Nebbiolo. But all of these wines have a range of styles, and
probably range of tannins (and of course there are wood tannins as
well as grape).
Rose is a pretty good way to ensure no perceptible tannin.

"Jeffrey" > wrote in message
...
> Hi
> I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> suggested she has a glass a day.
> Ta
> Jeff

One way to seee if tannins are the culprit is to ask your wife if tannic
black tea also tastes harsher now.

Unfortunatley the reaction to red after this therapy is not uncommon - a
friend some years ago ended up selling his red wine collection after chemo.

Martin

On Nov 27, 9:59*am, Dan the Man > wrote:
>>
> I don't know where you are, but in some parts of the US there are
> winemakers using a hybrid grape called Chambourcin. It has no tannins
> at all, in my experience.
>
> Dan-O

Marechal Foch is another low-tannin grape.

Andy

On Nov 28, 5:55*am, "Martin Field" > wrote:
> "Jeffrey" > wrote in message
>
> ...
>
> > Hi
> > I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
> > My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
> > now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
> > mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
> > glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
> > have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
> > she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
> > suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
> > suggested she has a glass a day.
> > Ta
> > Jeff
>
> One way to seee if tannins are the culprit is to ask your wife if tannic
> black tea also tastes harsher now.
>
> Unfortunatley the reaction to red after this therapy is not uncommon - a
> friend some years ago ended up selling his red wine collection after chemo.
>
> Martin

Many thanks to all for your suggestions. Will certainly take heed.
I assume the low tannic wines will have lower health benefits, no?
J

On Fri, 26 Nov 2010 06:02:44 -0800 (PST), Jeffrey >
wrote:

>Hi
>I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
>My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
>now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
>mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
>glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
>have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
>she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
>suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
>suggested she has a glass a day.
>Ta
>Jeff

My wife started chemo almost exactly 4 years ago, so we are probably
just a little bit behind you in the recovery cycle. Her taste buds
also evolved post-chemo and we have been having this very
conversation for the past 6-12 months or so. In her case,I don't
think it is tannins, per se, that cause problems, but she finds highly
acidic wines unpleasant. Overall, she now prefers softer, fruitier
wines (both red and white). Not necessarily fruit bombs, but rather
wines that I find slightly out of balance. This has led both of us to
explore new styles, as my buds have not changed. I will say that she
is much more tolerant of acidic wines when consumed with food than she
is when simply drinking a glass of wine by itself, so I haven't had to
completely give up old habits. But in any case that's a small price
to pay for the pleasure of sharing any time with her.

On 30/11/2010 11:07, Jeffrey wrote:
> On Nov 28, 5:55 am, "Martin > wrote:
>> > wrote in message
>>
>> ...
>>
>>> Hi
>>> I'm new here. I'd like to ask an unusual question:
>>> My wife had chemo for breast cancer four years ago. She
>>> now cannot drink red wine - feels extremely harsh in her
>>> mouth, whereas pre-cancer she could easily handle a
>>> glass or two. Her oncologist says it's because her taste buds
>>> have been damaged. I'm assuming it's the tannins that
>>> she cannot tolerate - whites are easier for her. I'd like
>>> suggestions for reds that have very soft tannins. Her onc
>>> suggested she has a glass a day.
>>> Ta
>>> Jeff
>>
>> One way to seee if tannins are the culprit is to ask your wife if tannic
>> black tea also tastes harsher now.
>>
>> Unfortunatley the reaction to red after this therapy is not uncommon - a
>> friend some years ago ended up selling his red wine collection after chemo.
>>
>> Martin
>
> Many thanks to all for your suggestions. Will certainly take heed.
> I assume the low tannic wines will have lower health benefits, no?
> J

Exactly. I almost made that point earlier, but hesitated because I am
not a medical doctor and do not see it as my place to give medical advice.

I'd discuss the issue with the doctor to find out why wine was being
recommended, and if your wife does not like the style of wine that woudl
be effective ask if there are alternative ways of getting the health
benefits. Another option is just to drink the wine anyway - there are
worse medicines than an overly tannic red wine as I am sure your wife
can testify.

--
www.winenous.co.uk