In this production method, grapes are first allowed to undergo fermentation, after which distilled spirits are added to stop fermentation and keep the leftover residual sugar from converting into alcohol. Fortified wines are those which have had distilled alcohol added as a method of boosting ABV. Fortificationįinally, we come to fortification. There are few regions of the world in which producing wine from dried or partially dried grapes has survived, although Italy is an excellent example, producing wines such as Amarone, Recioto and Vin Santo via this technique. This results in thicker skins and higher levels of acidity, both of which can vary in intensity depending upon how long the grapes are allowed to raisin. There’s another dessert wine production method that somewhat mirrors late harvest techniques, and it’s allowing the grapes to dry partially on the vine before they are picked. Sauternes is also made this way, as are a variety of dessert wines produced throughout Australia and North America. Many German Rieslings are produced in such a manner and actually can be classified by harvest conditions.
In these scenarios, winemakers allow their grapes to overripen by delaying the harvest, resulting in high concentrations of sugar and assisted in large part by dehydration of the grapes. Late HarvestĪnother common way to produce sweet wines is via what are commonly referred to as late harvest techniques. There are a great deal of well-known wines that are produced this way, including Moscato, Port, Ice Wine, Madeira, Masala and others. Yeasts are often inhibited by the addition of sulfur, but fermentation can also be halted via temperature shifts. The production style mentioned above - in which fermentation isn’t allowed to finish - is perhaps the most common. Types of Dessert WinesĪs one might expect, there are a number of different ways in which to go about producing dessert wines. Dessert wines are an entirely different story, as the yeast cells in the wine die before ever being able to gobble up the excess leftover sugar. If you’ve ever had a high alcohol wine that was so dry and tannic you found yourself puckering the entire time, you can rest assured that in this instance, there was very little residual sugar left over in the wine, if any. When grapes are fermented to become wine, their sugars are consumed by yeast, creating a byproduct that many wine drinkers are all too familiar with: alcohol. While official classification may come down to ABV, most consumers and somms look for only one characteristic when determining dessert wines: residual sugars. This is somewhat confusing to many, as there are plenty of sweet wines that fall well below 14%, as well as dry wines that extend beyond this percentage. This is why 14% is the highest ABV that most red table wines will get to before being bottled, as many producers attempt to boost ABV but don’t want their wines classified as dessert wines. According to the TTB, any wine over 14% ABV must be classified as a dessert wine. It’s easy for a producer, bartender or sommelier to sell a particular wine as a “dessert wine”, but what exactly does that mean? The answer isn’t actually quite as ambiguous as you might think.
0 kommentar(er)
