Features
The production of sweet wine is a real art, that is mastered only by the best winemakers and the most patient ones. In order to get grape sugared, it needs to be prepared for a long time to help the berries "lose" liquid. As a result, the wine should contain about 150 grams of sugar per liter and contain alcohol at the amount of 14-20%.
As you can guess, in sweet wine there is no place for sugar syrups or other sweeteners - all the sweetness is given by the grapes and only. In addition to brightly expressed sweetness, sweet wine should always be accompanied by sourness. The aroma of this sweet wine is extraordinarily rich: notes of fruit, fragrant herbs, nuts, flowers and spices also can be tasted here.
As for the color differences, it is often possible to find a white sweet wine, while red and pink wine also is produced, but is still less popular.
Production
To make sweet wine, the grape is processed in one of four ways:
The berries of the grape are left to become overripe on the vine until late autumn, till the time they become more like raisins. However, because any bad autumn weather can spoil the harvest, many manufacturers prefer not to risk and dry the grapes in special drying chambers.
Note: wine made from late grapes is marked as “late harvest”, “auslese” or “vendanges tardives”.
The grapes are laid out to dry on special straw mats, in a cool and dry place. This simple "old" method is still used in Italy and some regions of France.
Note: wine made from grapes dried on straw is marked as “passito” or “vin de paille”.
After the grapes have already ripened on the vine, they are left there until specific frost (-7-8 ° C). The icy bunches are quickly collected and sent straight to the press.
Note: wines made from frozen grapes are called “eiswein”. Do not confuse “eisewein” and “iced-wine” - the latter is made from artificially frozen grapes.
In some regions of France, Austria and Germany, special fogs is lifting, during which the grapes are affected by a noble fungus - botrytis. When the wind blows fungus from berries, moisture begins to evaporate from the affected areas on the grapes. After several such fogs, the berries are dried up and ready for the production of sweet wine.
Note: such wine is marked as “sauternes”, “berenauslese”, “trockenbeerenauslese”.
Wine age
The aging of Muscat sweet wine is faster than for all others. On average, they need 2-3 years. Varieties Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gevurtstraminer are aged for 5-6 years. Wines of Montluis, Vouvray, Car-de-Chom and Côte du Lyon ripen from 5 to 10 years, and Barsac, Tardives and Sauternes - up to 20 years old. Ice wines, as a rule, live from 35 to 50 years.
Serving
Sweet wine is a real salvation in cases when "dry" and semi-dry wines do not "match". For example, it perfectly harmonizes spicy dishes with aged blue cheese. Sweet wine also fits well with ordinary food - fried meat or vegetables, paste and canapes.
What is obvious by the name, dessert sweet wines are also served to desserts - it is true, however, that the sweetness of the dessert itself should be not as sweet as the wine. For this reason, even pancakes or light curd pastries are good for sweet wine.
Sweet wines taste best at a temperature of 12 ° C. This means that before serving it is better to place it into the refrigerator for about 1.5 hours. If you want to further suppress the intense sweetness of the wine, put the bottle in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
Sweet wines are served in small wine glasses so that the wine immediately appears on the edge of the tongue and allows you to feel the fullness of the taste. Wines like sherry, Madeira or port wine are served in narrow glasses. This is done so that alcohol, on the one hand, does not have time to disappear, and on the other hand, so that the strong smell of alcohol literally does not reach the nose.
Wine list
As mentioned above, white sweet wines are much more spread than red or pink. One of the most popular varieties for sweet wines is Riesling. The wine of the same name is produced from Riesling variety – starting from dry to saturated sweet. Riesling from the Moselle Valley deserves a special attention, as, for example, Dr.Loosen Riesling Kabinett. Tasting it you will feel an incredible combination of fruits, orange peel and a subtle smell of smoke. Drink this wine with spicy dishes and see how noble sweetness softens the fiery spice.
Ice wine is produced both from white grape varieties (Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Chenen Blanc, Pinot Blanc and others), and from the red ones (Cabernet Franc, Merlot). It is perfectly paired with desserts or fruits. To enjoy the taste of excellent ice wine, try the traditionally German Blue Nun Eiswein or Dr.Loosen Riesling Eiswein.
Red dessert wine Angelorum Recioto della Valpolicella Classico DOCG has a complex taste with a balance of bright sweetness and soft acidity.
Souternes wine also deserves your attention (dried under the influence of noble fungus) Baron Philippe de Rothschild Reserve Mouton Cadet Sauternes. This drink from the Bordeaux region has a fine balanced taste, combining honey, bitter orange, candied pears and quince notes. It is recommended to pair with foie gras, blue cheeses and citrus fruit tart.
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