Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

These are the incredible white wine varietals everyone should know

Do you prefer your white wine dry or sweet?

By
White wine on summer day outdoor
Twin Design / Shutterstock

I’m the first to admit that wine can be incredibly confusing. The exquisite, delightfully sublime nectar of the gods for which we are entirely unworthy? Sure. But also confusing. As someone who loves and appreciates all wine,

I get a little irritated when asked the question: “Do you like red or white?” Um. Both? But while I inwardly roll my eyes at this overly simplified question, I understand that it’s merely (sometimes) a way to crack open the conversation about the intricate, nuanced, but often utterly confounding world of wine. Asking a simple question such as this starts that conversation, and it’s a fun conversation to have. So today, in the interest of this article, we’ll say that I prefer white because sometimes, at certain meals or gatherings or moods or times of day, I do.

Recommended Videos

Let’s say you’ve just asked someone this red or white question, and your fellow conversationalist has answered “white.” A good follow-up question would be to ask if they prefer dry or sweet white wines or light or full-bodied whites. Do they prefer a crisply and almost stringently acidic pinot grigio or a soft and buttery oaked chardonnay? Understanding a wine’s color is only the teeniest scratch on the surface of knowing what you’re drinking and how to best enjoy it.

Related

So today, we’re looking at some of our very favorite types of white wine. We’ll discuss what makes them popular, how full in body they are, and whether they’re sweet or dry and what that means.

What type of white wine is most popular?

White wine clinking glasses
Matthieu Joannon / Unsplash

While the list of wonderful white wines is lengthy (more on this in a moment), there are some mainstays that are, of course, more popular and more readily available than others. There are four primary white wine grape varietals from which they make the most popular and easily accessible white wines — chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, pinot grigio, and Riesling.

Which white wines are sweet or dry?

Flight of white wines
henry fournier / Unsplash

When describing the dryness or sweetness in white wine, there are five terms with which one should be familiar: bone-dry, dry, off-dry, medium-sweet, and sweet.

  • Bone-dry white wines have little to no residual sugars, giving them a fresh and crisp flavor with no sweetness. Some bone-dry wines can include albariño and pinot grigio.
  • Dry white wines have just a hint of sweetness and with decent amount of acidity, providing a perfect balance of sweet, fruit-forward flavors with drier, crisp, fresh notes. Some dry wines include Grüner Veltliner, sauvignon blanc, and unoaked chardonnay.
  • Off-dry wines walk the balance beam between dry and sweet, making them tremendously popular. Chenin-blanc and Moscato d’Asti are considered off-dry white wines.
  • Medium-sweet wines are noticeably sweeter than their drier counterparts and are most often described as sweet, with a more acidic balance following that first sugary sip. Popular medium-sweet wines are late-harvest Rieslings and Gewürztraminer.
  • Sweet wines are noticeably sweet, with very pronounced sugars and often jammy, fruity flavors. Sweet wines include wines like ice wine and Sauternes.

What is the easiest white wine?

White wine in glass swirling
Big Dodzy / Unsplash

If you’re new to wine, whites are a great place to start because of their easy, light drinkability — for the most part. Of course, there are many whites that are robust and complex, but whites are more often the gentler wines, without any confusing tannins or complicated oaking (for the most part) to dissect.

If you’re looking for an easy white wine to start with, we recommend light-bodied bottles like pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc, Moscato, Tiesling, and unoaked chardonnay. Each of these wines provides its own unique body and flavor profile, but each is approachable in its subtle, bright notes.

What are the main types of white wines?

Glass of white wine
Kichigin / Shutterstock

Before even picking up a glass of wine, there’s a lot you can know about its taste by studying three factors: the wine’s body, acidity level, and where it lands on the dry to sweet scale. Below are some of our very favorite white wines and how you can decide if that particular bottle is right for you.

Albariño

  • Body: Light
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Bone-dry

Assyrtiko

  • Body: Light
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Chablis

  • Body: Light
  • Acidity: Medium to high
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Chardonnay

  • Body: Light to medium
  • Acidity: Medium to high
  • Dry/sweet: Dry to bone-dry

Chenin blanc

  • Body: Full
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry to medium-sweet

Gewürztraminer

  • Body: Medium
  • Acidity: Low
  • Dry/sweet: Medium-sweet to off-dry

Grüner Veltiner

  • Body: Light to medium
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Ice wine

  • Body: Medium to full
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Sweet

Moscato (Muscat blanc)

  • Body: Light
  • Acidity: Low
  • Dry/sweet: Off-dry

Pinot grigio

  • Body: Light
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry to bone-dry

Riesling

  • Body: Light to medium
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry to medium-sweet

Roussanne

  • Body: Full
  • Acidity: Medium to high
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Sancerre

  • Body: Light
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Bone-dry

Sauvignon blanc

  • Body: Medium
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Sauternes

  • Body: Full
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Sweet

Torrontés

  • Body: Medium
  • Acidity: Light t0 medium
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Vinho Verde

  • Body: Medium
  • Acidity: High
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Viognier

  • Body: Full
  • Acidity: Low
  • Dry/sweet: Dry

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Lindsay Parrill
Lindsay Parrill
Contributor
Lindsay is a graduate of California Culinary Academy, Le Cordon Bleu, San Francisco, from where she holds a degree in…
Cristalino tequila guide: Everything to know about it and which ones to drink
Get to know the contemporary style of tequila
Tequila in a shot glass

I've been writing about alcohol for almost 20 years, and in that time, I've spent a long time sipping tequila and getting to know the various aging terms. Unlike whiskey, which often tells you the number of years it matured right on the label, tequila (like cognac) has a specific set of terms used to describe how long a tequila has matured.  You've probably heard about cristalino tequila in the last few years but might not know what it is.

There's a good chance you know most of the tequila aging terms. Of course, blanco (also known as silver or plata) is the clear, often unaged (although it can be aged for at least three months) level. Then there’s reposado, which must be matured for at least 2 months up to one year, añejo, which is aged between one and three years, extra añejo, which is aged for longer than three years, and joven, which is a blend of blanco tequila and aged tequilas. Cristalino is the last aging term and one that's fairly new to the tequila world -- this cristalino tequila guide will shed more light on the subject.
What is cristalino tequila?

Read more
What is cask strength bourbon and why should you try it?
You might have wondered what cask strength actually means
Whiskey splashing from a glass

When it comes to whiskey (and bourbon mainly), there are a lot of terms drinkers need to know to at least carry on a polite conversation about the spirit. Things like bottled-in-bond, mash bill, proof, angel's share, age statement, bunghole, sour mash, high-rye, and non-chill-filtered come to mind immediately. Luckily, we’ve written articles delving into these and other whiskey-related terms (you can check it out right here). That said, there’s one term that we’d like to take a deeper dive into today: cask strength.
What is cask strength bourbon?

Also referred to as barrel proof or barrel strength, cask strength is a whiskey (and rum) term that’s actually quite self-explanatory. While it’s exactly as the name suggests, there’s so much more to it. Cask strength is used to describe a whiskey or rum that was taken directly from the cask or barrel and not diluted (or proofed down) with the addition of water.

Read more
Does decaf espresso exist? Here’s what to know
Strong coffee flavor without the caffeine
Espresso cup with a book and coffee beans

Espresso is illustrious for its bold and strong taste, crafted by forcing hot water under high pressure to create a concentrated"shot."  Yet, what makes espresso unique is its brewing method, which differs significantly from making coffee with an automatic drip coffee maker. Espresso's rich, concentrated taste is not dependent on its caffeine content but rather results from its small serving size and quick, pressurized brewing process.

Ultimately, the difference is not in the beans themselves but in how they are brewed. Both espresso and coffee begin with the same coffee beans. However, many are shocked to find decaf espresso on a coffee shop menu. Like decaf coffee, a decaf espresso shot begins with coffee beans stripped of their caffeine.
What is decaf espresso?

Read more