Want wine lovers to get up in arms? Mention that the alcohol content in wine is getting higher.

You'll usually find people divided into two camps. One group loves a wine with rich, ripe, fruit flavors and doesn't mind, or even prefers, the higher alcohol levels.

The other camp calls these wines "fruit bombs" that are hard to pair with food.

Higher alcohol is a hot-button issue that has caused some polarization among wine fans. But the debate may not be as simple as it appears.

Wines really are getting higher in alcohol, although the amount of the increase varies from study to study. In general, alcohol levels have increased roughly 2 percentage points in 15 years in most regions around the world.

Wine is made from grapes by the process of fermentation. Yeasts consume the sugars in grapes, converting those sugars into alcohol. So riper grapes have more sugar, and ultimately more alcohol.

Why would alcohol be higher today? Some think it is from global warming. Others believe it's a stylistic change designed to make wines that will appeal to influential critics.

Still others think it is just a function of better grape-growing and increased understanding of the best way to coax a grape into full ripeness.

Whatever the cause, what is the impact for the average drinker? The preference for alcohol is highly personal.

For instance, I'm a fairly small person and I like to have a second glass of wine. So I tend to seek out wines that are lower in alcohol so I don't feel bad the next day.

I'm also a food person, interested in the interaction of food and wine. It is easier to pair wines with moderate alcohol with food, although that probably has more to do with higher acidity in lower-alcohol wines.

Still, I also really love a good wine. I want a wine that is interesting, balanced and has something to offer beyond forgettable fermented grape juice.

Last week, I had the pleasure of tasting a stunning riesling from the Mosel region in Germany that was barely 8 percent alcohol and an amazing cabernet from Napa that was 14.8 percent. Both were excellent, complex and wonderfully made.

Ruling out a wine simply because of alcohol content is a mistake. There are so many wines out there waiting to be tried. It is silly and shortsighted to pick sides.