Sugar on Top: the Basics of Dessert Wines
Most people will agree that wine and dessert go well together, holding hands as they skip into the sunset of your mouth. Just the very image of a glass of wine next to a plate of tiramasu is enough to make most people salivate, drooling like a person about to fall in love at first bite. It seems simple enough: a glass of wine, a plate of sweets, a taste bud or fifty, but wining and dining in this manner needs more than a twinkie and a bottle of sugary liquid; it requires proper pairing of food and wine for the ultimate experience. It also requires a knowledge of what the term dessert wines truly entails.
Dessert wines, by definition, appear pretty simple: they are wines often served with a dessert. They contain a rainbow of flavors including peach, herb, oak, and berry. When consumed with an after dinner dish or added to a cream their tang and potency creates a wonderful combination. Even for desserts or creams laden in lightness, the vividness of a dessert wine can make a world of difference. A general rule of thumb is that dessert wines should be sweeter than the desserts they are served with.
Standing alone sometimes, dessert wines do not always play the role of the sidekick. Dessert wines are also wines of independence enlightening others, preaching equality and singing Im a wino hear me pour in bottles too big to ignorefor whomever will listen. In short, they are served without food as often as they are served with it.
Dessert wines include wines that are easily spelled, such as Sherry, ice wine, and Port, to wines that you need to practically be a linquist to pronounce, such as Tokaji Aszu, Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese, and Vin Doux naturel. These wines, by nature, are often highly sweet - offering kind words through the grape vine and willing to open the cellar door for others. This makes them hard to handle for those with a mouth not full of sweet toothes. For this reason, they are sold in small bottles, as well as larger ones.
In the United States, the legal definition of dessert wines is different than in other places; here, dessert wine is defined as a wine that contains 14 percent alcohol or more. Simply, the US believes that dessert wines are fortified wines. This not only leads to confusion among some consumers, but it also unfairly provides the insinuation that certain wines are worhty of carrying the dessert title when they are not. To put it in perspective, both Mad Dog and Boones are considered dessert wines in the US, which only makes sense if the apple cobbler on the plate in front of you were replaced by a slice of cow pie.
In other countries, this legal definition holds no water, or no wine; there are dessert wines in Germany, for instance, that contain less that eight percent of alcohol. Made in countries all over the world, different regions offer different styles of dessert wine. Some of these wines include additional alcohol and some do not. Some are sparkling and some are not. Some are high in alcohol and some are not. It purely depends on the wine.
Whether sweet or dry, dessert wines are often produced through late harvesting or a process that stops fermentation before all sugar can be converted into alcohol. This leaves the end product like a bottle of wine mixed with a packet of Equal: its left tasting sweet. If additional alcohol is added before fermentation takes place (as occurs in fortified wine) yeast is killed and residual sugar remains; this also leaves the wine sweet.
Even with the Dessert Wine label, not all dessert wines live up to their assumed reputation. Some of them should accompany the side of a rich meal, rather than be consumed with something served afterwards.
White dessert wines, like regular white wines, are best served chilled. Similarly, red dessert wines also follow the crowd; they are served most often at room temperature. Both white and red dessert wines are reputed for being particularly good with fruit and freshed baked goods, such as sweet rolls and breads.
Overall, it is easy for people to be confused on what constitutes a dessert wine. As Uncle Sam points his finger at fortified wines, dessert wines in the US meet a different explanation than they do elsewhere. The US aside, these drinks are usually best thought of as wines that are sweet, not necessarily one you would want to take to dinner, but one you would stick around once the dinner plates are cleared.
Jennifer Jordan is the senior editor for http://www.savoreachglass.com. With a vast knowledge of wine etiquette, she writes articles on everything from how to hold a glass of wine to how to hold your hair back after too many glasses. Ultimately, she writes her articles with the intention that readers will remember wine is fun and each glass of anything fun should always be savored.
Frost Bite - Ice Wine is More Than Just Frozen Grapes
One of the most rapidly growing trends in the world of wine seems to be with the rise in popularity of ice wines (or eiswein in German). This is inte...
Sweet Wines for Valentines
Have you been around the Valentines block and back again bearing the same, tired box of chocolates and dozen red roses?Fellows, have you bought so man...
Light, Bright & Sparkling - How To Choose Your Next Bottle Of Wine
Plenty of people are intimidated at the thought of buying wine, because wine is so confusing. That is not too far from the truth, because the sheer va...
Wild Goose Vineyards (Okanagan Falls)
The Wild Goose Winery, established by the Kruger Family, sits on 10 acres of rolling hills just South of Okanagan Falls. First planted in 1983, the Wi...
Ruster Ausbruch: the Specialty Dessert Wine from Austria
Ruster Ausbruch is a specialty sweet dessert wine from Austria. In understanding what Ruster Ausbruch is, it is helpful to first look at the name itse...
2 Simple Varieties of Wine - White and Red
Wine is regarded one of the greatest pleasures in the world. It is one of the most commonly served beverages in the world and has tremendous cultural ...
Drinking Wine Keeps You Healthy?
Wines are one of the most elegant of all drinks. Wine is not good unless it is served properly and chosen correctly. Did you know that there are hundr...
What is True Ice Wine?
One would expect ice wine to have a long history in winemaking, but it does not. In fact, ice wine has only been around for about 200 years. The preva...
The Steps in Winemaking Process
Wines, one of the most popular beverages in the world, is made through a special process called winemaking or vinification. Winemaking includes the ch...
Wine Storage Tips and Facts
Most Vital Aspects To Guarantee Your Wine Stays FreshWine storage is essential to the success of any collection. If you enjoy collecting find wines th...
Absinthe - The Traditional Way to Drink Absinthe
Absinthe is a delicious treat to enjoy on special occasions and when you want to impress your friends. This is the most straightforward way to drink a...
Basic Wine Knowledge
It is true that Wine is a beverage that is well known all over the world. You will come across lot of wine lovers, throughout the world. The consumpti...
Italian White Wines
Though Italian red wines are often talked about more than white wines, there are some sparkling white wines produced by certain regions in Italy. The ...
White Zinfandel Wine
White Zinfandel wine is a blush wine made in California from early-picked Zinfandel grapes. The red grapes are quickly separated from their skins duri...
I Love Italian Wine and Food-Amarone and Friends
This article reviews a fine, distinctive Italian red wine and its more pedestrian cousins. I look at several food pairings. Was it a bargain?I have a ...
Fine Italian Wines for Everyone
Italy is famous for many things, but perhaps it is most famous for its wine. The wines of Italy are almost as varied as the people themselves. Wine is...
Do It Yourself Wines - Inexpensive Yet Creative Home Made Wines
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of home made wines is grapes. How can we not associate wine with grapes when all you see on the shel...
Try Iced Green Tea For A Healthy Alternative Drink
If you are having a party or barbeque and are looking for suitable non-alcoholic drinks why not try iced green tea on your friends, it is a healthy an...
Fortified Wines - How Are They Made?
Fortified wines result from adding a spirit (usually brandy) to a table wine. The resulting mix, will have an alcoholic content, between 17% and 20% v...
Wine Etiquettes
Wine is regarded as a gift to the civilized world. Obviously, there is etiquette related to it and if one claims to have sound knowledge of wines and ...