If you’re a sweet tooth, you may choose to shy away from wine. This does makes sense, as the general perception is that wine is either bitter or acidic.
While this may be true of a number of wines, there are actually more sweet wines than you think. Sweetness in wine is more of a spectrum, and sweet wines aren’t just limited to dessert wines.
In fact, there are several aspects where sweeter wines have the upper hand compared to other kinds. For those who enjoy the more sugary side of things, here is your guide to the kinds of wine that you may actually enjoy.
What exactly is a sweet wine?
Any kind of wine can be considered as a sweet wine, whether it’s white, red, rosé, or sparkling. Its identifying quality is that it contains more residual sugars than other kinds of wine.
To put this in perspective, the average desert wine contains 8 grams of sugar per 3.5 ounces. On the other hand, regular wine only has 1 or 2 grams of sugar per standard serving, which is 5 ounces.
Related Article: Reaping the Numerous Health Benefits of Wine
What is meant by “sweet”?
When thinking of the word “sweet,” you may be thinking the equivalent of candy, donuts, or caramel. With wine, the kind of sweetness is different. There is actually a points system to deciding just how sweet a wine is.
Point system for sweet wine
- Very sweet (7+)
- Sweet (5-6)
- Medium dry / semi-sweet (3-4)
- Off-dry (1-2)
- Dry (00/0)
Sommeliers decide the sweetness of the wine based on several factors, the first being the amount of residual sugars it contains. The more sugar there is, the higher it will score on the point system.
The environment which the grapes are grown in, and factors of the fermentation process, also has effect on the sweetness of the wine.
Related Article: Breaking Down Varying Types of Wine
How does sweet wine get its sweetness?
Winemakers use different methods to achieve more sweetness in their wine.
1. Only fermenting the ripest grapes
Sweetness depends on how old the grapes were during harvest. More mature grapes normally have more sugar in them than younger grapes do. There is a science to why ripe grapes leave behind more residual sugar.
During fermentation, yeast begins to slow down the process when the batch has reached alcohol levels of 10% to 16%.
Ripe grapes contain more sugar. Therefore, there will still be a percentage of sugar that isn’t processed by the yeast.
2. Filtration
This happens during the fermentation process. The wine is filtered when winemakers have deemed it sweet enough. The yeast is removed and fermentation ceases.
3. Stopping fermentation midway
Winemakers will sometimes halt fermentation before too much sugar turns into alcohol. This way, there is still a good amount of residual sugar left.
4. Water evaporation
Some winemakers opt to expose the grapes to sunlight before fermentation. This dries up the grapes, and allows the sugar to become more concentrated, as there isn’t too much water to dilute it.
Related Article: Differentiating Sparkling Wine and Champagne
Is sweet wine healthier?
The health benefits of red wine are undeniable. Between antioxidants and resveratrol, red wines are able to boost heart health, lowering cholesterol levels and preventing heart-related diseases.
Some sweet wines are of the red wine variety, so are they healthier than other wines. As it is with any alcohol, the key to benefitting from its nutrients is moderation.
Studies have shown that having one 5-ounce serving of red wine per day can be beneficial to one’s health. However, with sweet wines, it’s best to take extra caution.
Because sweet wines contain more sugar than dry wines, they also have higher levels of calories. Excessive consumption may be detrimental, especially for people with diabetes.
Types of sweet wine
Looking for sweet wines to try? Here’s a list of types of wines, and bottles you can purchase at minuman.com.
Sweet white wines
- Sauternes
- Moscato
- Chenin Blanc
- Riesling
- Tokaji
- Gewürtzraminer
Available at minuman.com:
- Thomas Barton Reserve Sauternes
- Man Family Wines Sparkling Brut Chenin Blanc
- Penfolds Bin 51 Riesling
Sweet red wines
- Black muscat
- Barchetto d’Acqui
- Lambrusco
- Schiava
Available at minuman.com:
Sweet rosé
- Pink Moscato
- White zinfandel
Available at minuman.com:
Port
- White port
- Ruby port
- Tawny port
Available at minuman.com:
