Does All Wine Have Sugar?

In the same way that there is no such thing as wine that's 100% free of sulfites, there is also no wine completely without sugar, though oftentimes this at least is natural sugar. The amount of within a bottle of wine can vary widely. During wine production, the added yeast converts sugars from grapes into alcohol, creating wine. The non-fermentable sugar, typically referred to as residual sugar, is what remains in a fully dry wine. When making sweeter wine, winemakers will halt fermentation sooner by filtering out the yeast or incorporating sulfur dioxide. Otherwise, grape concentrate can be added to drier wine after fermentation to boost sweetness.

Although sugar in wine tends to be natural, sometimes winemakers choose to chaptalize wine, meaning that they add sugar to wine before fermentation to aid with the process. This ensures that there is enough sugar for the yeast to convert to alcohol. This is needed because grapes don't always ripen to full sweetness, usually because of colder weather. In warmer regions like California, chaptalization is prohibited, requiring winemakers to use grape concentrate as an alternative to pure sugar to address this issue. 

Even though adding sugar to wine is often associated with cheaper, lower-quality wines, this process is actually considered essential to producing certain high-quality wines, such as authentic Champagne. There, sugar is used to balance acidity and bring out sweeter notes in place of natural fruity elements. And if you're opting for a more pure tasting wine, try giving wine decanting a try.

So now that you know all wine has sugar, how much sugar is actually in wine? It depends. Dry wine is categorized as any wine with 10 grams of (natural or added) sugar or less per liter, meaning that 1% or less of the wine is sugar. Red wines categorized as dry include Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Syrah, whereas dry white wines can be Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay (these white wines work wonderfully in cooking as well). Medium, semi-dry, half-dry, off-dry or semi-sweet wines contain 10 to 35 grams of sugar per liter. Remember that wines can be produced to be slightly drier or sweeter, too. Riesling, for instance, comes in dry, semi-dry, and sweet styles, depending on how it was produced. Ultimately, it's crucial to read the labels.

Sweet wines like moscato or some Riesling varieties have anywhere from 35 to 120 grams of sugar per liter, whereas dessert wines can have up to 220 grams of sugar per bottle. Sparkling wines have their own system in place, ranging from extra brut (extra dry) to deux (sweet). Extra dry variations can have close to 0% residual sugar. 

When it gets down to it, if you prefer a drier glass, red wines tend to be less sweet than white, with a five-ounce glass of red wine averaging out at less than 1 gram of sugar per serving. Generally, most wines tend to be less sugary than most popular cocktails, although anyone watching their sugar intake will still want to opt for drier wine varieties.