History
In the seventh century BCE, the Greek poet Hesiod described what is likely Commandaria as “the Gift of Bacchus, Sire of Joy.” Shakespeare later sang of sherry’s ability to make the brain “apprehensive, quick, forgetive, full of nimble fiery and delectable shapes.” America’s Founding Fathers toasted the signing of the Declaration of Independence with Madeira, and Napoleon Bonaparte ordered Constantia from his exile in Saint Helena. While the timing, persons involved, and scenarios all differ, the base style of wines remains the same: all were sweet.
Most of the world’s winemaking regions produce both dry and sweet wines. Consequently, there are hundreds of different types of sweet wines in a wide range of styles. Historically, sweet wines were most prized because of their glorious flavors and ability to age, often seemingly indefinitely. Fun fact: before refrigeration and modern technology, one of the ways to increase stability in wine was to increase the sugar content in the grape must.
California Dessert Wine Timeline
U.S. tax laws favored fortified wine production, and it became the cheapest form of alcohol. Dessert wines accounted for about 40-50% of total California production from 1900 until Prohibition.
Sherry-style wines are produced in California by fermenting ripe white grapes (or Mission) to dryness, adding concentrate, spirits and, in some cases, flavorings, and heating or baking wines to speed up the oxidative reactions.
Port-style wines are also made in the Golden State by fermenting any red variety to dryness and arresting fermentation after a few days with the addition of spirits to fermenting juice, fortifying it up to 19-20% ABV, sweetening with concentrate, and finally aging in barrels and/or heat.
Dessert wines account for 70% of all wine consumption.
“Nearly 90 per cent of the tonnage and dollar value of grapes crushed every year in California go into the production of dessert wines” – Louis Petri, Petri Wine Co.
Sweet wine production in the U.S. accounts for 5% of volume.
Sales of dessert wines decline to 24% of total U.S. wine consumption.
Dessert wine sales crash as table wines boom, led by new technology and, more specifically, increased popularity of aromatic whites. Dessert wines are increasingly perceived as “old-fashioned” or “skid row.”
Andrew Quady and friend Darrell Corti make their first port from Amador County Zinfandel at the now defunct Lodi Vintners, where Quady was working as an assistant winemaker.
Sales of dessert wines plummet to 2% of total U.S. wine consumption.
Consumption and sales of sweet and dessert wines in the United States reach historical low point as a percentage of overall wine sales.
Sweet wines are often an entry point for new wine drinkers. One in three new wine consumers starts with these bottlings, according to the National Consumer Panel. But that doesn’t mean more experienced wine lovers should shun sweet wines. Historically, the perception of sweet wine in the United States was not the best, as many associated it with being unsophisticated. This is unfortunate as there are so many examples of great sweeter-style wines emanating from multiple origins and styles, demonstrating that it’s not the case at all.
A new crop of American winemakers, particularly in sometimes overlooked areas like the Midwest, are earning appreciation and reversing negative stereotypes with high-quality domestically made sweet wines that deserve to be at table.