Light red wine: the red that doesn't weigh you down
16 light red wines, from €12.50A light red is not a diluted red. It is a wine whose tannins stay in the background, where fresh red fruit comes before structure, and which can be served at around 14 °C without falling flat. It goes with what powerful reds overwhelm: poultry, a vegetable dish, a pressed cheese.
Pinot Noir provides the largest share, but Gamay, Cinsault and a few mountain grape varieties give the same profile. The origins that appear most often in our range are France, the United States and New Zealand.
Matetic & Guillaume Letang - El Viejo del Valle 2024
An elegant and gourmet Pinot Noir with flavors of wild red fruits
Cruchon - Coteaux de Trumao Pinot Noir 2021
An intense and vibrant Pinot Noir from Chilean Patagonia
Delicato Wines & Alex Gittins - Shadow Point Pinot Noir 2019
A delicious and charming Pinot Noir from the Monterey Valley
Sonoma-Cutrer - Russian River Valley Pinot Noir 2022
A Pinot Noir from the Russian River Valley, all finesse, between red fruit, spice and black tea.
Domaine Quenard & Fils - Sansoufrir Rouge
A Savoie red with no added sulphites, light and easy to drink, with lovely aromas of redcurrant and blueberry.
Domaine du Four Bassot - Coteaux Bourguignons Pinot Noir 2024
A crunchy, indulgent Coteaux Bourguignons, bursting with red fruit: a true wine for sharing with friends.
Domaine Simon Gaudet - Bourgogne Pinot Noir Altis 2023
A crunchy, indulgent Bourgogne Pinot Noir from high-trained vines, all raspberry and cherry.
Zeni - Bardolino DOC Classico Vigne Alte 2024
A fresh, fruity Bardolino Classico, born from high-altitude vineyards above Lake Garda.
Boutinot - El Infernillo Pinot Noir 2021
A Pinot noir from northern Chile, made with finesse and freshness
Peregrine Estate - Pinot noir 2015
A Pinot Noir that combines purity and elegance, concentration and length.
NZ WINERIES & Samantha Bailey - Cloud Factory Pinot Noir 2020
A fresh and delicious Pinot Noir, grown near the coastal areas of New Zealand
Matetic & Guillaume Letang - Sierra Grande Pinot Noir 2020
A delicate and elegant Pinot Noir with flavors of wild ripe fruit
Rippon - Mature Vine Pinot Noir 2017
An elegant and refined Pinot noir, grown on the banks of Lake Wanaka
La Famille K - Le Père Rouge 2018
A Beaujolais from century-old vines combining structure and delicacy
Jay Christopher - Basalte Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2018
A world-class Pinot noir, with notes of spices and undergrowth
Thomas Leithner - Zweigelt 2013
The estate that created Zweigelt, an iconic Austrian grape variety with peppery flavors.
Grape varieties that produce a light red wine
The single word “light” covers very different wines. This table separates what comes from the grape variety from what comes from the climate.
| Grape variety | What he gives | Where can it be found in our country | The dish that goes with it | In our country, starting from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pinot Noir The most represented in the range | Cherry, raspberry, undergrowth. Silky tannins, lively acidity. | Burgundy, Oregon, New Zealand, Patagonia | Roast poultry, grilled salmon, mushrooms | €13.80Santa Rita Secret Reserve |
| Gamay | Banana, crushed strawberry, almost no tannin. | Beaujolais, Loire, Switzerland | Charcuterie, raclette, picnic | €16.50 |
| Cinsault | Redcurrant, peony, a very fine weave. | South Africa, Languedoc, Chile | Grilled vegetables, tagine, mildly spicy cuisine | €12.50Matetic The Old Man of the Valley |
| Schiava, trousseau, poulsard | Alpine reds: pale, saline, almost translucent. | South Tyrol, Jura, Savoy | Mountain cheeses, deli meats |
A red wine can also be lighter due to the climate rather than the grape variety: a high-altitude Syrah remains finer than a Syrah from the plains. See full-bodied reds for the opposite.
Three bottles to enter the profile
The charts give the theory. Here are three bottles available today, at three price points.
The admission fee
A Chilean Cinsault crafted by a French winemaker. Redcurrant, white pepper, no gripping tannins.
Matetic El Viejo del Valle · €12.50Pinot Noir on a budget
Santa Rita Secret Reserve, Leyda Valley. Black cherry, a hint of smoke.
Santa Rita Secret Reserve Pinot Noir · €13.80Step up a notch
Patagonia, high-altitude vineyards, winemaking without artifice. The Argentinian Pinot Noir that put Chacra on the map.
Malma Chacra la Papay · €16.50
Light doesn't mean small
Lightness is often confused with a lack of substance. A great Burgundy Pinot Noir costs more than a powerful Cabernet and weighs half as much on the palate: finesse is the hardest thing to achieve. What a light red seeks is fruit precision and length without the weight.
It's also the most versatile profile at the table. Where a tannic red demands red meat, a light red goes from fatty fish to cheese without ever dominating.
How do you choose
We automatically discard light red wines, those that are pale because the harvest was poor. The key indicator is the finish: if it is short and dry, it's a thin wine. If it remains fresh and mouth-watering, it's a fine wine.
The Wine Wanderer Team
What we're being asked about light red
A light red, do you serve it chilled?
Between 13 and 15°C, yes. Twenty minutes in the refrigerator before serving is enough. Served at 20°C, the alcohol takes over and the fruit disappears.
What's the difference between this and a fruity red?
Lightness refers to the structure, fruitiness to the aroma. A wine can be fruity and full-bodied, like a Primitivo. A light red wine has few tannins, regardless of its fruit. See fruity red wines.
Does it keep?
Great Pinot Noirs age very well, for ten years or more. Entry-level Gamays and Cinsaults should be drunk within three years, that's when they're at their best.
What to serve with a vegetarian dish?
This is the best profile for this: low tannins, no conflict with vegetables. Our vegetarian pairing guide details difficult cases, such as artichoke and asparagus.
Why so little Gamay in the selection?
We source from independent winemakers around the world, and Gamay is still predominantly French. Cinsault and Pinot Noir meet the same need with greater diversity of origins.