We know a wine is dry when we taste it, but actually determining what makes it dry can be a tricky question to untangle and comes down to a variety of factors.

In non-dry wines, the producer stops the fermentation process just shy of the yeast being able to consume all of the sugar in the base liquid, so the final product still has some sweetness to it.

Meanwhile, the best sweet red wine, like lambrusco, pairs beautifully with Gouda cheese on a charcuterie board. Dry red wine, like a medium-bodied chianti, is versatile and a friendly pairing with ...