I just got back from a rather unpleasant trip to the dentist. It turns out that the acidity in wine doesn’t play very well with my tooth enamel. Anyone else getting lectured by their dentist over their wine consumption?
When doing an extended day/evening of tastings I regularly rinse my mouth with water over the course of the tastings. I also make sure to rinse/brush at the end of the night. Haven’t had an issue raised at the dentist (yet).
Your dentist probably already told you this…but it’s not just wine. Soft drinks and other high acid and/or sugary foods/drinks are a problem as well, so cut back on those. Also, brush with a soft (not medium or hard) bristle toothbrush…but don’t brush after having wine or other acidic drinks (your teeth are softer then)…instead rinse your mouth with water, or better yet something like Biotene
I’m with you on preferring firm bristle brushes…but it’s better to use soft bristle all the time (for this issue anyway). And you’re better off not brushing at all after an acidic drink like wine/coffee cuz it makes your teeth softer and brushing at that time can damage them.
Switch your toothpaste to Sensodyne Pronamel. I was told the same thing a few years ago and, according to my dentist who recommended it, it has helped immensely. I do trust them as igave had the same dentist for over 20 years.
But apples are also crisp and help clean a little. And the others are generally eaten and done. You may have a glass of OJ, and with some food, but not a whole bottle. You don’t drink olive oil - it’s usually in some food that may not be all that acidic. And many people (like me) drink coffee with milk, so the acidity level is not so great.
OTOH, with wine, you tend to sit and sip for a while, constantly flushing your teeth with a little more acid. I think that’s why wine is considered more of a problem than other things. Of course, if you sat around sucking on lemons or even eating pineapple and grapefruit all evening, that would probably be worse.
But there’s an antidote!
Cheese! That’s why as I sit here drinking this OK but not particularly brilliant CA Grenache, I’m having a nice pizza with lots of cheese on it.
And that brings up another issue, i.e. why is it that CA can do competent, but so far as I’ve tasted, not brilliant Grenache? I know it’s not a high-acid wine and it’s a bit of thread drift, but Spain, France, and Australia seem to get it.