Question: Sugar alcohol is an organic compound, typically derived from sugars, that comprise a class of polyols, which is the most popular, due to its similarity to sucrose in visual appearance and sweetness?

Context articles: Maltitol
Xylitol
Sweetness of wine
Sugar alcohol
Inositol
Isomaltulose
Sugars in wine
Xylitol pentanitrate
Sugar
Isomalt

Maltitol is a sugar alcohol (a polyol) used as a sugar substitute.
 It has 75–90% of the sweetness of sucrose (table sugar) and nearly identical properties, except for browning.
 It is used to replace table sugar because it is half as caloric, does not promote tooth decay, and has a somewhat lesser effect on blood glucose.
 In chemical terms, maltitol is known as 4-O-α-glucopyranosyl--sorbitol.
 It is used in commercial products under trade names such as Lesys, Maltisweet and SweetPearl.
Xylitol is a sugar alcohol used as a sweetener.
 The name derives from Greek: ξύλον , "xyl[on]", "wood" + suffix -"itol", used to denote sugar alcohols.
 Xylitol is categorized as a polyalcohol or sugar alcohol (alditol).
 It has the formula CHOH(CHOH)CHOH and is an achiral isomer of pentane-1,2,3,4,5-pentol.
 Multiple studies using electron microscopy have indicated that xylitol is effective in inducing remineralization of deeper layers of demineralized enamel.
 Fair evidence was found that xylitol (as chewing gum, lozenges, nasal spray, etc.) reduced the incidence of acute middle ear infection in healthy children.
The subjective sweetness of a wine is determined by the interaction of several factors, including the amount of sugar in the wine, but also the relative levels of alcohol, acids, and tannins. Sugars and alcohol enhance a wine's sweetness; acids (sourness) and bitter tannins counteract it.
 These principles are outlined in the 1987 work by Émile Peynaud, "The Taste of Wine".
Sugar alcohols (also called polyhydric alcohols, polyalcohols, alditols or glycitols) are organic compounds, typically derived from sugars, that comprise a class of polyols. Contrary to what the name may suggest, a sugar alcohol is neither a sugar nor an alcoholic beverage.
 They are white, water-soluble solids that can occur naturally or be produced industrially from sugars.
 They are used widely in the food industry as thickeners and sweeteners.
 In commercial foodstuffs, sugar alcohols are commonly used in place of table sugar (sucrose), often in combination with high intensity artificial sweeteners to counter the low sweetness.
 Xylitol is perhaps the most popular sugar alcohol due to its similarity to sucrose in visual appearance and sweetness.
Inositol or cyclohexane-1,2,3,4,5,6-hexol is a chemical compound with formula C H O or (-CHOH-), a six-fold alcohol (polyol) of cyclohexane.
 It exists in nine possible stereoisomers, of which the most prominent form, widely occurring in nature, is cis"-1,2,3,5-"trans"-4,6-cyclohexanehexol, or myo"-inositol (former names meso-inositol or i-inositol).
 Inositol is a sugar alcohol.
 Its taste has been assayed at half the sweetness of table sugar (sucrose).
Isomaltulose is a disaccharide carbohydrate composed of glucose and fructose linked by an alpha-1,6-glycosidic bond (chemical name: 6-"0"-α--glucopyranosyl--fructose).
 It is present in honey and sugarcane extracts.
 It tastes similar to sucrose (table sugar) with half the sweetness.
 Isomaltulose is also known by the trade name Palatinose, which is manufactured by enzymatic rearrangement (isomerization) of sucrose from beet sugar.
 The enzyme and its source were discovered in Germany in 1950.
 After evaluation of its basic physiology—reviewed—it has been used as a sugar alternative in foods in Japan since 1985, in the EU since 2005, in the US since 2006, and in Australia and New Zealand since 2007, besides other countries worldwide.
 Characterization, purity, and analytical methods for commercial isomaltulose are laid down, for example, in the Food Chemicals Codex.
 Physical and physiological properties of isomaltulose have been summarized; its physical properties closely resemble those of sucrose, making it easy to use in existing recipes and processes.
Sugars in wine are at the heart of what makes winemaking possible.
 During the process of fermentation, sugars from wine grapes are broken down and converted by yeast into alcohol (ethanol) and carbon dioxide.
 Grapes accumulate sugars as they grow on the grapevine through the translocation of sucrose molecules that are produced by photosynthesis from the leaves.
 During ripening the sucrose molecules are hydrolyzed (separated) by the enzyme invertase into glucose and fructose.
 By the time of harvest, between 15 and 25% of the grape will be composed of simple sugars. Both glucose and fructose are six-carbon sugars but three-, four-, five- and seven-carbon sugars are also present in the grape.
 Not all sugars are fermentable with sugars like the five-carbon arabinose, rhamnose and xylose still being present in the wine after fermentation.
 Very high sugar content will effectively kill the yeast once a certain (high) alcohol content is reached.
 For these reasons, no wine is ever fermented completely "dry" (meaning without any residual sugar).
 Sugar's role in dictating the final alcohol content of the wine (and such its resulting body and "mouth-feel") sometimes encourages winemakers to add sugar (usually sucrose) during winemaking in a process known as chaptalization solely in order to boost the alcohol content - chaptalization does not increase the "sweetness" of a wine.
Xylitol pentanitrate is a rarely used liquid explosive compound with extremely high viscosity formed by completely nitrating xylitol, a sugar alcohol compound with five carbon atoms.
 In pure form it is a white crystalline explosive, much like other fully nitrated polyols.
 However, during synthesis lower nitrated forms are produced, which produce a viscous liquid mixture that is hard to purify.
Sugar is the generic name for sweet, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food.
 There are various types of sugar derived from different sources.
 Simple sugars are called monosaccharides and include glucose (also known as dextrose), fructose, and galactose.
 The "table sugar" or "granulated sugar" most customarily used as food is sucrose, a disaccharide of glucose and fructose.
 Sugar is used in prepared foods (e.g., cookies and cakes) and it is added to some foods and beverages (e.g., coffee and tea).
 In the body, sucrose is hydrolysed into the simple sugars fructose and glucose.
 Other disaccharides include maltose from malted grain, and lactose from milk.
 Longer chains of sugars are called oligosaccharides or polysaccharides.
 Some other chemical substances, such as glycerol may also have a sweet taste, but are not classified as sugars.
 Diet food substitutes for sugar, include aspartame and sucralose, a chlorinated derivative of sucrose.
Isomalt is a sugar substitute, a type of sugar alcohol used primarily for its sugar-like physical properties.
 It has little to no impact on blood sugar levels, and does not stimulate the release of insulin.
 It also does not promote tooth decay, i.e. is tooth-friendly.
 Its energy value is 2 kcal/g, half that of sugars.
 However, like most sugar alcohols, it carries a risk of gastric distress, including flatulence and diarrhea, when consumed in large quantities (above about 20-30 g per day).
 Isomalt may prove upsetting to the intestinal tract because it is incompletely absorbed in the small intestine, and when polyols pass into the large intestine, they can cause osmotically induced diarrhea and stimulate the gut flora, causing flatulence.
 As with other dietary fibers, regular consumption of isomalt can lead to desensitisation, decreasing the risk of intestinal upset.
 Isomalt can be blended with high-intensity sweeteners such as sucralose, giving a mixture that has the same sweetness as sugar.