Sweet Red Wine vs. Dry Red Wine: The Difference Between Them

Author: Jill Loeffler

There is a big difference between dry red wine and sweet red wine. The difference is confusing at times. This article provides a definition of the two and more information on those wines in between.

During the wine making process, sugar is converted into alcohol. The amount of residual sugar left in the wine during the wine making process is what determines its level of sweetness.

This puts sweet and dry red wine on the opposite ends of the residual sugar wine spectrum. It also means that if a wine is sweet, it can't be dry. If a wine is dry, it can't be sweet.

Wines with around 5 to 30% residual sugar are considered sweet wines. Wines with around 3 to 5% residual sugar are referred to as medium or semi sweet red wine. Dry wines have residual sugar of only 1 to 2%.

Since many wines are fruity, they are sometimes confused with sweet wines. However, this is just the intensity of the fruit in the wine as a fruity red wine can be either sweet or dry. It just depends on the amount of residual sugar in the wine.

Where Does Dessert Wine Fit In?

There is also confusion around sweet red wine vs dessert wine. Some people think they are the same, but there is a difference between the two. Port, sweetened Sherries and late harvest wines are different types of dessert wines.

Most of dessert wines have higher alcohol content than regular sweet red wine and just a touch of sweetness. The official regulation in the US is that a dessert wine is any wine that is between 14 and 24% alcohol.

More and more drier wines are falling into the technical definition of a dessert wine. Since they have a little less sweetness, they also won't interfere with any of the sweetness in your actual dessert.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/wines-and-spirits-articles/sweet-red-wine-vs-dry-red-wine-the-difference-between-them-4231824.html

About the Author

Jill Loeffler has more information on sweet red wine and dry red wine on her web site at AllAboutRedWine.

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