sweet wine suggestions?

Some sweet whites to try:

Maryhill Viognier

Maryhill Muscat

Maryhill Gewurtztraminer

Allegro Muscato

Fetzer Gewurtz. . .

Husch Muscat

Reuscher Haart Reisling

Eroica Reisling

I list so many Maryhills because they are readily available around here and under $20 for the most part.

Wines like Pinot Gris, Pinot Grigio, Sauv Blanc, and Chardonnay are not typically sweet. Whereas Viognier, Gewurtz, Reisling, Semillion, Muscat, and a few others are typically sweet, but in varying ranges. Some are sickly sweet while others just have a hint - perfect for sipping on a warm afternoon.

Remember that traditional rose' wines are not sweet. US White Zin type wines are typically the bottom of the barrel wines. Nothing against anyone who likes them, but they don't really qualify as wine for most regular wine drinkers. More like wine coolers.

For bubbly, there are 3 in particular that I can think of that are respectable an fit your needs.

Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs

Schramsberg Cremant

Schramsberg Reserve

Each of these three wines are slightly sweeter than traditional bubbly. Be sure to get Blanc de Noirs, not Blanc de Blanc, which is noticebly drier. Avoid any bubbly that says Brut or Extra Brut (these are the driest) - Look for Demi-sec and 'sweet' instead. I personally don't care for Asti or any of the other cheap bubbly. It gives me an outrageous headache and coats my teeth. Blech.

Remember, attend lots of tastings, take lots of notes, and have fun! Good luck in your search! : )

what specifically has he had that he doesn't like, in terms of white varietals? what does he consider sickeningly sweet, dessert wines?

if not, ask for any Barzac, Vin Santo, or Muscat. Some Sauternes can be had a decent price, but generally it's the most expensive thing out there.

A late harvest riesling (if New World) or beerenauslese or eiswin (if German) is great too.

French-American hybrids like Vidal produce decent ice wines from Ontario.

PS I love Caymus Conundrum but would not call it sweet. If he doesn't like apricot, I'd avoid albarino.

I would be interested in trying this botrytis chardonnay, but generally the rule of thumb is the opposite: some late harvest wines are affected by botrytis cinerea, though not all, and the botrytis affected wines (like Sauternes) are generally the sweetest dessert wines around. Botrytis also generally corresponds with lowered acidity -- increasing the sensation of sweetness. This lower acidity is offset in ice wines, which are not affected by the botrytis fungus.

Is this winery not letting botrytis progress very far before arresting its development?

Well, at the moment, I have a glass of Crown Bench Estate's Livia's Gold. It is a Botrytis Affected Chardonnay which means it is sweeter than a dry white wine but not as sweet as a late harvest wine or an icewine. The wineries website is:

http://www.crownbenchestates.com/

Dr. Loosen "Dr. L" Riesling from Germany

Menage a Trois White table wine

Las Brisas Vuira

Soliera Albarino

Mar de Frades Albarino

Gran Fuedo Rose

Bethel Heights Pinot Gris

Caymus Conundrum

Marco Negri Moscato d'Asti

Those should be widely available and give you a good starting point. Salute!

Spumanti is wonderful(even the cheaper brands, ie: J. Roget.) For the Fruity, but not overly sweet wines, check out the Horton Winery in Virginia. They have a website. I'm not keen on red wines either, BUT they have some wonderful flavors that I will buy again, examples, pear, raspberry, blackberry. Unique.

My husband and I had the same type of problem. Our friends all like to drink wine, but we weren't so into it. We ended up finding a riesling wine that we both liked. This eased us into liking other wines, and now I even like a few of the reds.

Dr Loosens Reisling, a bit hard to find in some parts, but well worth the search

My favorite bulsh wine is Canei. Sweet and very good. My favorite champagne is Asti Spumati. Again, very good. Hope I've been helpful.

I can personally highly reccomend San Sebastian Winery (http://www.sansebastianwinery.com/) in St. Augustine - "Vintner's Red" and Wollersheim Winery (http://www.wollersheim.com/) in Prarie Du Sac, WI - "River Gold".

Goats do Roam is my new favorite brand of wine. It's South African and they make a really yummy blush. It's cheap, too.