What is the origin of the term "dry" to mean lacking sweetness?

The nearest reasonalbe explanation is that the not-sweet wines tend to have a astringent (drying) feel in the mouth. Of course, astringency is more associated with tannis than sweetness.

Ron,
I think your guess is as good as any, and it seems that no one is sure of the real answer.

I thought you might like to see what others wrote on another string. Its rather long, but interesting.

http://p098.ezboard.com/fwordoriginsorgfrm1.showMessage?topicID=13419.topic