South Africa – Sparkling wine catergories (RS)

Sparkling wines also have defined terms to help consumers identify the sweetness of the wine. Brut is the most widely used but wines with lower residual sugar or unsweetened dosage are increasingly popular. These are sometimes also labelled as ‘zero dosage’, identifying them as having dosage that is from unsweetened base wine with zero added sugar rather than no actual dosage. Research by French Champagne houses has suggested that there is also a preference for sweeter styles in South Africa with extra dry, dry and demi-sec wines becoming more popular.