What does dry really mean?

[Innkeeper]

Technically dry means that all the sugar in the wine has been fermented into alcohol. Almost all red wine is dry, and most white wine is too. As our friends around here like to point out, some dry wines taste drier than others. This is because of other characteristics of the wine. One that is acid forward will seem drier than one that is fruit forward. The fruit tastes sweeter than the acid.

White wines that are frequently made off dry include riesling, chenin blanc, and gewurtztraminer. White Zinfandel, which is really a rose', is usually off dry too.