Types of Wine

Wine is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented grapes. Although the word wine is commonly defined as a beverage made only from grapes, most fruits like apples and berries also have the potential to produce wine. Like grapes, these fruits also have balanced quantities of acid, sugar, enzymes, tannins, and nutrients necessary for fermentation. The wines produced are usually named after the fruit, like an apple wine or a plum wine.

Types of wines are normally classified by taste, Dry (not sweet), Semi-Dry and Semi-Sweet, by how it is made (table wines, sparkling wines, fortified wines), and by its place of origin or type/variety of grape. You will see a variety mentioned on the bottle label which means the wine is named after the grape. It is written with a capital initial (Pinot Noir, Merlot, etc.) Bordeaux wines, Napa Valley wines, California wines are examples of wines named for the place of origin. European wines tend to be classified by region, while non-European wines are often classified by the grape.

Different types of wines differ in taste that is distinguished by its sugar and alcohol percentage. Dry wines are the lightest at only 2-3% sugar and 10% alcohol content. A dry wine is simply not sweet. Semi-sweet wines contain 5-6% sugar and 13-14% alcohol. Semi-dry wines are usually a little sweeter than semi-sweet wines. The sweet wines or "dessert wines" contain the highest percentage of about 14-15% sugar and 16% alcohol. Note that not every bottle of these types of wines falls in this range, but most will. You can find out how much sugar is added to a given wine by contacting the wine producer directly.

Let's go into detail about sugar and alcohol here

Table wines are light wines we serve with meals. They are also called natural wines because the sugar in the naturally fermented juice of the grape converts into alcohol in bracing acidity. The color in whites varies from pale to deep amber, while reds are striven to arrive a deep clear ruby.

Sweet wines, also called "Fortified wines" are wines commonly drunk before or after meals. The addition of a grape brandy increases its alcohol content from twenty to twenty-two percent. Fortifying the wine halts the fermentation process before all the grape sugars are converted into alcohol, making it sweeter.

Sparkling wines are the bubbly wines and also known as "festivity wines", because of its bubbly lively character. Sparkling wines undergo secondary fermentation to develop natural carbonic gas responsible for the bubbling and sparkling of the wine. The bottle is sealed after the second time to keep the gas inside the wine. Their alcohol content is about twelve percent, likewise recognized to aid in digestion.

Learn more about sparkling wines like champagne, prosecco, and cava, here.