Forgive My Ignorance, But...

[Lumpia]

...most of the time, when I am cooking while following a recipe, it will tell me to add "dry" red wine, "dry" sherry, or "dry" white wine. Having never heard of this term in my childhood, I am perplexed as to what it means. Every time I see this in the list of ingredients, I always get the picture in my head of red or white wine that is used in the liquid form (like the regular wine drinks we have from time to time). Is this some kind of powder that is mixed into the recipe or is it something else? Thanks in advance for any enlightenment!

[Anneke]

Lumpia,

It just means don't use a sweet or fruity wine.

[Lumpia]

Thanks! So in other words, you mean to say that it means not to use those wines which have had some sweetener added to them, but just plain "red wine" or "white wine"? I know what that means! Thanks again!

[momoreg]

Sweet wines are naturally sweet. They don't have sweetener added. So you can't rely on the label to tell you whether the wine is sweet or not.

[Suzanne]

A good dry red wine to start out with for cooking is Gallo Hearty Burgundy. Hey, don't laugh, you wine experts! It's consistent in flavor, and is a great introduction to cooking with wine! When I first started cooking at home with wine, for white wine I usually used a dry white vermouth. It has more flavors in it (herbs, all natural stuff) than a plain white wine, but it's also consistent and less likely to have a sweet edge that you don't want. For sherry, there Gallo and Taylor dry sherries that works fine in cooking. Just be sure that whatever sherry you buy, the label says "dry."

Things you do NOT want to use, ever, when the recipe calls for dry wine or sherry:

"cooking wine" such as the Holland House stuff. First, the wine part of it is disgusting. Second, the manufacturer adds a ton of salt to it; this is a throw-back to the days of Prohibition.

"cream sherry" or "medium-dry" like Dry Sack. Cream sherry means SWEET, and Dry Sack ain't dry.

Okay, that's enough material to cover for one lesson.

[Leo R.]

I`ve tasted a number of Californian wines that put some European wines to shame!!There are some excellent wines being produced in the U.S.
BTW Lumpia,there are some good wines from South America,e.g. Chile produces some interesting stuff.Sweet wines are generally considered to be dessert wines and are like a alcoholic syrup.
Good hunting,Leo.

[Lumpia]

Thank you for the very informative replies. They are very helpful. Now I know what to use next time when I see "dry wine" in the list of ingredients!

[chrose]

Lumpia,
Don't ever fear to ask a question on here that you may feel is too simple or makes you feel like you should know IE:

Forgive the ignorance

the only questions that are ignorant are the ones that aren't asked.
Remember that at one time or another no one on this board knew even how to boil water or break an egg with the possible exception of Suzanne.

[alexia]

Chrose is right! (as always) but keep in mind that no matter how long you've been cooking, there's always more to learn. As a home cook of many years, I learn gallons of things here every day. And you may notice that even the professionals ask for info and advice.

This is a wonderful place to learn. I still can't decide what to admire most about the people who post here: their knowledge? their civility? their unfailing generosity?

[Lumpia]

Thank you. I am already getting more endeared to this place; everyone seemed so helpful when I was lurking around just before I signed up, and seeing how willingly they answer all questions, even those that at first seem dumb, I thought that I myself could jump in and have my own questions answered! You are right; cooking is an ongoing, lifelong learning experience! I have the feeling that this is really what I want to do in life.

[Robertito]

A very good source for info on wine is the "Wine Basics" section of Wine Spectator online.

http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Wi...,1181,,00.html