9 Semi Sweet White Wine Styles (Best Bottles To Buy, Prices)

A semi sweet white wine has around 10–35 g/L of residual sugar - an excellent alternative if you’re looking for a white wine with just a subtle sweetness!

Their vibrant fresh fruit flavors and moderate alcohol content also make them ideal for brunches and summer parties. 

In this article, we’ll discover the nine different types of semi-sweet white wines, the sugar content in other white wines. We’ll also explore how wine sweetness is determined and how these fruity wines are made. 

9 Different Types of Semi Sweet White Wines       

Here are nine exciting semi sweet white wine styles, along with their tasting notes, recommended food pairings, and best bottles to buy:

• Moscato
• Riesling
• Pinot Gris
• Chardonnay
• Sauvignon Blanc
• Semillon
• Gewurztraminer
• Chenin Blanc
• Vidal Blanc

1. Moscato

Moscato wine is usually characterized by delicious grapefruit notes and a fragrant floral aroma. 

The palate opens with delicious peach, apricot, and orange citrus flavors and a subtle hint

 of elderflowers. 

Food Pairings: Appetizers, fruit-based desserts, and meat dishes like Pork Tenderloin

Best Bottle to try now: 2019 Markovic Estates Reserve Moscato Semi Sweet ($8)

2. Riesling

Riesling is a white grape variety that can produce both sweet and dry white wine styles so make sure to check the label before you grab a bottle of this aromatic wine.

Riesling wine is full-bodied and luscious with fresh peach and honeysuckle aromas. The palate has a tropical fruit flavor balanced by bright acidity and a clean finish.

Food Pairings: Ham, pork, and delicate or raw fish 

Best Bottle: 2015 Grosset 'Alea' Off-Dry Riesling ($48)

3. Pinot Gris

Pinot Gris (Pinot Grigio) is a white grape variety, which is a mutation of the darker Pinot Noir grape. Pinot Gris is used to make both dry and sweet white wine styles.

Pinot Gris is well-known for its aromatic stone fruit aroma, refreshing green apple flavor, and tropical fruit notes.

Food Pairings: Spicy food and flavorful seafood like spicy grilled shrimp

Best Bottle: 2005 Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Brand $65

4. Chardonnay

Semi sweet Chardonnay wines have fresh fruit flavors and oak notes. 

You’ll also notice some rich citrus fruit flavors and hints of melon and vanilla on the palate. 

Food Pairings: Seafood and fettuccine alfredo

Best Bottle: 2014 Radevic Estate Wines Chardonnay Semi Sweet ($29)

5. Sauvignon Blanc

Sauvignon Blanc wines usually have a tropical fruit flavor and a bright, floral aroma. 

You’ll also notice the wine’s vibrant palate filled with green apple and juicy mango flavor notes. 

Food Pairings: Lemon-flavored fish and chicken

Best Bottle: Madame Coco Semi Sweet Sauvignon Blanc ($8)

6. Semillon

Semillon wine has vibrant fruit flavors, including pear, green papaya, and lemon. Semillon can also be blended with Sauvignon Blanc to create a syrupy, full-bodied wine.

Food Pairings: Shellfish and meat dishes with cream sauces

Best Bottle: 2012 Tower Estate Semillon ($19)

7. Gewürztraminer

The Gewürztraminer grape variety is widely grown in the Alsace region. In fact, Gewürztraminer accounts for 19.4% of the region’s total wine production. 

This sweet white wine style offers fruity flavors with the aromas of rose petals, peach, lychee, and apricot.

Food Pairing: Asian cuisine, pork, and grilled sausages

Best Bottle: 2015 Domaines Schlumberger Gewurztraminer Les Princes Abbes ($29)

8. Chenin Blanc

Semi sweet Chenin Blanc wines are made from late-harvest grapes. These late harvest wines have concentrated ginger and stone fruit notes and a floral aroma. If the Chenin Blanc grapes have been affected by Noble Rot, you’ll notice a hint of saffron and smoke. 

Food Pairing: Seafood, poultry, and pasta

Best Bottle: Vina Vieja Chenin Blanc Semi Sweet ($4)

9. Vidal Blanc

This sweet white wine has the fragrant aroma of orange blossoms and apricot, making it the perfect summer drink. You’ll also notice the wine’s exquisite honeyed nectarine notes and racy minerality. 

Food Pairing: Simple sandwiches, pork, and sauerkraut, as well as melons and fruit-based desserts

Best Bottle: Wagner Vineyards Vidal Blanc Ice ($60)

How Is Wine Sweetness Determined?

Wine sweetness is determined by the amount of residual sugar in the wine. 

The sugar levels are measured in grams per liter, where 1% of sweetness is equivalent to 10 g/L of residual sugar.

What exactly is residual sugar?

Residual sugar is the natural sugar (fructose) found in grapes that remain in the wine once fermentation is completed.

And since yeast converts sugar into alcohol during fermentation, the more alcohol a wine has, the less residual sugar it'll contain.

Compared to semi-sweet wine, a dry wine will have a higher alcohol content and minimal residual sugar (15 g/L or less).

Winemakers usually leave a small amount of sugar to balance out the wine’s acidity. 

Now let's look at how semi-sweet wines compare with other white wines.

Levels of Sweetness And Sugar Content In Other White Wines

Here are the sweetness levels and residual sugar content for all types of white wine – from bone dry to sweet:

How Are Semi Sweet White Wines Made?

A semi sweet wine can be sweetened before or during the fermentation process.  

A. Before Fermentation

Winemakers can increase a wine’s sweetness before fermentation by manipulating the grapes. Here are the three methods they use:

• Late Harvest: The grapes are left on the vine for additional 1-2 months, which leads to naturally increased sugar concentration in the fruit.

• Noble Rot: The grapes are left on the vine until the grape clusters develop a grey fungus and rot, also known as Botrytis Cinerea or Noble Rot. 

Once the Noble Rot absorbs the water from the grapes, the fruit becomes shriveled with concentrated sugars, fruit acids, and minerals.

• Ice Wine: Ice Wine is made with grapes that are left to freeze on the vines. The sugars and other dissolved solids are left unfrozen, resulting in intense flavors and sweeter grape juice. 

B. During Fermentation

During fermentation, winemakers can increase a wine’s sugar levels to produce a semi sweet wine style by:

• Filtering: Winemakers use a fine filter to capture the leftover yeast and remove it from the fermentation tank. 

This process prevents yeast from completely converting all the grape sugar into alcohol, resulting in a wine with higher sugar content.

• Halting the fermentation process: Winemakers can also stop the fermentation process before the yeast has consumed all the natural sugars in the grapes.

Here are techniques they use to do this:

• Cold shock 
• Pasteurization 
• Adding additional alcohol to the wine

Experience The Delicate Flavors Of A Semi Sweet White Wine Today!

Semi sweet white wines have a subtle fresh fruit flavor and sweetness thanks to their residual sugar content.

As a result, they’re not as sweet as dessert wine or as bitter as a dry wine, making them the perfect choice for beginner wine drinkers.

However, if you’re an experienced wine lover looking for a more investment-worthy white wine, check out the Vinovest website. 

With Vinovest’s help, you can buy, sell, and store any fine wine with ease.