What is the deal with DRY white wine... why is it called "dry"?!
What is the deal with DRY white wine... why is it called "dry"?
I am just wondering the difference b/n dry wine and regular wine.. also, what is a good white wine to cook with?
Answers:
When a recipe calls for dry, white wine I usually cook with Chardonnay. Very cheap wine will leave your dish tasting stale, but cooking wine needn't be expensive. I buy cooking wine at the supermarket and look for bottles in the $8-10 range. I've found that vintage doesn't really matter, as long as you don't buy the $2.99 special. If I'm making a very delicate sauce, I'll choose a slightly more expensive bottle, in the $13-15 range.
Dry means it is high in tannins (from grape skins) that makes your mouth sort of pucker and feel cottony or "dry" inside. A sweet wine would be the opposite of dry.
Ever had bitter iced tea? That could be called dry as well.
A dry wine means that the fermentation process is allowed to convert most of the sugars from the juice into alcohol. A sweet wine either had the fermentation stopped, had very high sugar content in the juice to start with, or had sugar added.
According to my daughter (who drinks while I do not), dry wine actually makes your mouth feel dry after you've sipped it, whereas other wines do not leave you with that sensation.
Free from moisture; having little humidity or none; arid; not wet or moist; deficient in the natural or normal supply of moisture
Animal lover is right.
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dry is the opposite of sweet, when you're talking about wine.
white wines aren't usually as dry as red wines
any wine is good to cook with. the better the wine, the better it will turn out.
Just as the others have said dry wines have less sugar. "Regular" wine is sweeter and is most likely aged less. I have found the best wines for cooking are wines that are also good for drinking. So if you don't want to drink it, chances are you are not going to like it in your food. I like Rieslings myself. They are a bit sweeter, and have a nice after taste. I also have cooked with Rieslings and have found it tho be wonderful in gravies and soups. Just be sure to add the wine towards the end of your cooking because the longer it cooks the more blended it becomes with the other flavors.