Style
Dessert wine
dih-ZERT
Sweet on purpose
Late harvest, noble rot, ice, drying, or fortification — four roads to residual sugar with enough acid to stay alive.
- honey
- dried apricot
- citrus peel
- spice
- nuts
Botrytis (Sauternes, Tokaji, Beerenauslese) gives saffron, honey, and ginger. Icewine concentrates by freezing. Appassimento and passito dry the grapes on mats. Port and PX add spirit. All of them fail without acid.
Serve them too cold and they go mute; too warm and they go heavy. A small glass is correct, not stingy.
Blue cheese, fruit tarts, foie, and — sometimes — nothing but a conversation.
At the table
Service
46–54 °F (8–12 °C) depending on weight. Vintage Port warmer, decanted.
