Dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet or sweet? Wait a minute: How do the wines actually differ? In this article, you will learn about the different flavors of wine and what they are all about.

Table of contents

Difference: Dry, semi-dry, sweet, sweet

What does residual sweetness mean in wine taste?

What other flavors are there?

Summary

There are basically four different flavors of wine: dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet and sweet . You will know this information from the labels on wine bottles. The labels are not compulsory, but if they are used, you can quickly draw conclusions about the taste of a wine.

The description of the wine's taste depends primarily on the residual sweetness, but also on the acidity of the wine. The EU even prescribes specific limits for wine producers if they want to print the wine's taste on the label:

• A wine is dry if it does not contain more than 4 grams of residual sugar per litre . A wine can also be described as dry if it has a residual sugar content of no more than 9 grams per litre, but the acidity is no more than 2 grams per litre below the sugar content.
• The wine is semi-dry if it has a maximum of 12 grams of residual sugar per liter . Or 18 grams per liter if the acidity is no more than 10 grams per liter lower than the residual sugar content.
• The wine is sweet up to a limit of 45 grams of residual sugar per litre .
• Sweet wines are those that contain more than 45 grams of residual sugar per liter .

Attention:

Different limits apply to sparkling wines. This is mainly due to the carbon dioxide they contain, which reduces the sweetness of the wine. In contrast to other wines, the flavor must be indicated on the label.

The strict classification of wine does allow us to determine which direction the wine's taste will go, but this is also difficult to generalize . A dry wine does not necessarily mean that it is sour. It simply contains little unfermented sugar. However, you can taste the acidity in these wines more. On the other hand, wines with high acidity and high residual sugar content can also taste "dry" even though they are analytically rather sweet or sweet.

Note:

The less residual sugar there is in the wine, the more acidity you can taste. But that doesn't mean that it will taste "dry". The acidity is also important.

The residual sugar actually develops in the grape on the vine. The longer it ripens, the more sugar develops. The acid content, however, decreases. During fermentation, the sugar content decreases again because it is converted into alcohol. The wine therefore becomes drier over time.

The portion that is not fermented is called residual sugar . This is the decisive factor for the name on the label and, in addition to the aromas, bitter notes and acidity, is also responsible for the overall taste of the wine.

In addition to the flavors mentioned above, the wine can also be classified into other categories. The most well-known are mild and semi-dry .

• Mild : Sweet wines with a residual sweetness of over 45 grams per liter can be described as mild if the acidity is very much in the background. Here, the interplay between sweetness and acidity is clearly on the side of sweetness.
• Feinherb : In wine language, the term feinherb means nothing other than semi-dry. But don't be confused here. This doesn't automatically mean that the wine is tart. It can just as easily have a high residual sweetness. So always look at the exact information on the label.