How Much Sugar Is Usually In A Glass Of Red Wine?

Sugar is so delicious, but it can be your nemesis when not consumed in moderation. Every gram counts. So, if you are a red wine drinker, you may wonder how much of this sweetener is in each tumbler you are downing or sipping on. The answer is: It depends. Grapes are naturally sweet. While those who are trying to produce sweet wines may be adding teaspoons or cubes of this stuff to their product as they bottle it up, for the most part, red wine has little residual sugar. This is because as the grapes ferment, the yeast eats those sugars and transforms them into alcohol. Still, while the sugar level drops during this process, red wine isn't sugar-free. 

Where can you find red wine's sugar content? Don't expect to find its nutritional information listed on the side of a wine bottle. Winemakers do not have to list such information, and just because a wine bottle has a sugar-free label doesn't mean that it is. For dry red wines, a good rule of thumb is that a five-ounce glass, a standard pour, is going to have somewhere between 1 and 2 grams of residual sugar in it. Now, if you drink an entire 750-milliliter bottle, that sugar adds up; however, if you are just enjoying a glass or two with friends, it's not going to break your sugar counting. Dry wines include cabernet sauvignon, Spanish grenache, and pinot noir, and are often considered the absolute healthiest red wines you can drink. 

Sweeter red wines or dessert wines like port or ice wine are going to contain approximately 7–8 grams of sugar per glass of just 3.5 ounces. Of course, there is a middle road between dry and sweet wines. Off-dry wines like a fruity Lambrusco or a rosé are going to register at between 10 and 18 grams per liter. Medium sweet wines like a Zinfandel, Malbec, or pink Moscato have approximately 18–45 grams of residual sugar per liter, and sparkling red wines can have anywhere from 5 to 20 grams of sugar per liter of wine.

How much sugar is too much? According to the American Heart Association, daily sugar consumption should be limited to about 25 grams or 6 teaspoons of sugar if you are a woman, and about 36 grams or 9 teaspoons if you are man. Finally, if you plan to have a couple of glasses, remember: your red wine needs to be cooler than you think before you start sipping; choose a wine that won't break the sugar bank; and drink responsibly.