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Wine Sweetness Scale
The degree of sweetness (or dryness) in Italian wines is measured on a scale of grams of sugar per liter, subdivided in four basic categories:
- Secco (less than 6 grams of sugar per liter) is distinctly dry
- Abboccato (6 to 20 grams) is lightly sweet or mouth filling
- Amabile (20 to 45 grams) is medium sweet
- Dolce (more than 45 grams) is fully sweet.
When a wine seems too sweet, it may be referred to as sticky or cloying. The term liquoroso applies to wines of varying degrees of sweetness that, in some cases, are naturally strong and, in others, are fortified with alcohol.
Wine Acidity Scale
The degree of acidity is the other key factor in wine taste. A mature wine of balanced flavor will usually have 0.5 grams per liter of total or fixed acids. A young white wine may have 0.6 to 0.7 grams or, if it's especially tart or zesty, up to 0.8 grams.
A wine with more than 0.8 grams usually too acidic to be enjoyable. Over 0.9 grams is sour. A wine with less than 0.5 grams will taste flat or flabby since it lacks the brac.
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