If you love your wines to be beautifully aromatic and show pure, juicy red fruit flavours (think strawberry, red cherries, red plums) then lightly perfumed red wines such as pinot noir and gamay are right for you. They are also great for converting people who think they don't like red wine, because they don't have the bolshy tannins or heavy oak of fuller-bodied reds.

What makes a red wine soft and fruity?

Alcohol

Awine's alcohol level contributes to its mouthfeel and weight. Grapes grown in cooler climates (such as pinot noir and gamay) are exposed to less sunshine, leading to less sugar in the grape and therefore less alcohol resultant in the wine. As a result you generally won't get that 'hot' high-alcohol feeling in the back of your throat when you drink these wines.

Tannin

Tannins come from the skin, seed and stalks (imagine the sensation of overstewed tea on your gums and you'll get the picture!), and tend to be higher and more 'grippy' in grapes from hot climates. Because pinot noir and gamay prefer cooler climates, the tannins won't get as high as fuller-bodied styles. This makes lighter-bodied wines a bit too easy to drink sometimes!

Red fruit flavours

Cherry, strawberry, cranberry and red plum flavours are characteristic of lighter-bodied red grapes and because the best examples aren't over-oaked you'll notice that these juicy forest-fruit flavours can really sing here.

Super-sensitive

Pinot noir in particular is a very sensitive grape and needs a lot of TLC to get it to ripeness. Because it has a very thin skin it prefers cool to moderate climates, adding further to the delicate fragrance and super-pure fruit of these wines.

Food Matching

Mushrooms and truffles: Pinot noir has lovely lift and freshness and often develops into bosky, forest-floor flavours with age. Fellow forest-floor dwellers such as mushrooms and truffles have a real affinity with this savoury, leafy complexity.

Roast chicken and pork: Chardonnay is usually seen as the soulmate of these Sunday roast staples, but the mouthwatering lightness of these reds means they don't overpower the simple beauty of a chicken dinner. Added herbs, such as thyme and rosemary, will chime with the same herbaceous elements of the wine. Roasted root veg are another winning combination.

Source: https://www.thewinesociety.com/discover/wine-basics/wine-styles/soft-red-wines

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