Watch for new “sweetness codes” for wine labels in Ontario on their way!

Is this Riesling crisp and dry? New “sweetness codes” for wine labels in Ontario are coming, The old system of sugar code numbering denoting sweetness with a “0”, “1” or “2” for example is being replaced with the following descriptors.
Extra Dry (XD): No perceived sweetness, clean crisp acidic finish.
Dry (D): No sweetness perceived, well rounded with balanced acidity.
Medium (M): Slight sweetness perceived.
Medium Sweet (MS): Noticeably sweet.
Sweet (S): Distinctively sweet.

Also look for redesigned bin tags listing the actual sugar content of grams of sugar per litre.

The LCBO is changing up the system stating “Consumers today are looking for more information than ever before to help their buying decisions and many are choosing healthier lifestyles by being conscientious about the foods and drinks they consume,” George Soleas, senior vice-president, LCBO’s logistics/quality assurance division, said in a release.

“The sweetness descriptors and listing of actual sugar content provide LCBO customers with detailed information to help them find a wine they enjoy based on levels of perceived sweetness and discover other wines that taste similar.” and simple sugar content is not the only variable, the LCBO lab used an algorithm to come up with the descriptors, we’ll leave that to the chemists. The new program will start with LCBO table wines and Vintages and Vintages Essentials as new releases come out, the sparkling, dessert and fortified wines will stick to the old numeric program.