It features honeysuckle and orange blossom aromas, and it may be still, frizzante or sparkling. Moscato: Made from the Muscat grape, Moscato is grown in southern Italy with sunny and fruity notes. This removes the yeast, stopping the fermentation. Filtration: Here the wine is filtered after the desired level of sweetness is reached.Water evaporation: Drying grapes in the sun concentrates the sugars as the water evaporates, resulting in a high sugar level that stays after fermentation.This leaves the wine holding the sweetness of the residual sugar. Using very ripe grapes: The winemaker uses riper grapes as the yeast dies down when alcohol levels reach 10-16%.Halting fermentation: Here the winemaker stops the fermentation process before all the sugar is converted to alcohol, leaving the wine with a good amount of residual sugar.These include Moscato (Southern Italy), White Zinfandel (attributed to California), Riesling (Germany), Port (Portuguese fortified wine) and Sauternes (Bordeaux region of France). Whether white, red or rose, there are five main groupings of sweet wines. Simply, sweet wines have fairly high amounts of residual sugar. Ready to learn more about the wine that’s loaded with enough sugar to bake a cake? What Are Sweet Wines?

They also have a wonderful shelf-life as the sugar acts as a preservative, so they can age comfortably for 20+ years. Unlike dry wine, sweet wines have high amounts of residual sugar – hence the name. They’ve come into their own in the last few years and are a wonderful way to enjoy the fruit of the vine if you’ve got a sweet tooth. Sweet wines are no longer the preserve of dessert menus.

Sweet wines for beginners