Body 101

How To Assess The Body Of A Wine

Wines that are full-bodied tend to be round, mouth-filling and intense. They will be powerful wines, with more impact. Light-bodied wines on the other hand will be quite delicate and often fresher. Think of light-bodied wines like skim milk, medium like regular 2% milk, full-bodied wines like full or homogenised milk.

Food Pairing

Pairing foods to the body of a wine is all about congruency. So in general light foods go best with light wines whereas bigger, heavier foods go better with fuller-bodied wines. If you pair a full-bodied wine to a delicate and light dish, the wine will take over and mute the foods flavours. Whereas if you pair a light-bodied wine with a heavier dish, the food will take over and the wine will become even thinner and drizzle away into a bland, boring drop. It's better to match the light with light and full with full so they can share the stage to bring out the best in one another!

Light, Medium and Full Bodied Reds

1. Old Mates Pinot Noir 2024 (Light bodied) Floral and flirty, this Pinot Noir seriously overdelivers. From a single vineyard in Stellenbosch, it offers up a mix of ripe red fruits balanced by a hint of white pepper and some sweeping waves of acidity and very fine tannin. Soft and juicy, it drinks well chilled as well as at room temperature, and the bottle vanishes surprisingly fast :) 2. Bodegas Pinoso 'Costa Alicante' Monastrell 2024 (Medium Bodied) Domaine Gayda has a lovely balance between old world and new world and the T’Air D’Oc Syrah is the perfect example. This is medium-bodied Syrah with a nice amount of brightness and floral lift balanced by blue plums and blueberries, pepper and cocoa with juicy tannins. 3. Don't Feed the Seagulls Cabernet Sauvignon 2024 (Full Bodied) Structured, stylish, and just a little bit rugged — this Cab is like a well-worn leather jacket with a sea breeze twist. Expect classic blackcurrant and cassis up front, backed by notes of cedar, dried herbs, and graphite. There’s a coastal freshness here that keeps it from feeling too heavy, with fine tannins and a long, savoury finish. It’s polished, but still keeps its thongs (flip-flops, not the other kind) firmly on.