No, you are not being pervy if you are thinking about the body of a wine. In fact, it is an important consideration as you develop your palate
and learn how to describe the wines you like. Specifically, body (or “weight”) refers to the sense of alcohol in the wine and how it feels in your mouth. According to Food & Wine, “the more alcohol in a wine, the more body it will have, which means that wines from warmer climates (which produce grapes with more sugar to be converted into alcohol) tend to have more heft. Sugar, oak and the overall concentration of flavors in a wine can also add body.”
When you are considering a wine’s body, ask yourself if the wine seems oily or watery, thick or thin, etc. Remember that question in the palate quiz about which milk you would prefer if you were a dairy milk drinker? Well, we included that question because the weights of different milks serve as a proxy for the different levels of body in a wine.
To get a better sense of body, try this: Pour 1/4 cup of the following milks (nonfat, 2%, whole milk and heavy cream) into different glasses. Now, sip them in order, nonfat first. Compare and contrast how they feel on your tongue and in the back of your throat. Are they light, heavy, too rich? Which do you prefer?
If milk is not your thing you can also try this experiment with wine. Start with a Pinot Grigio (the lightest), then move through a buttery California Chardonnay to a California Cabernet Sauvignon and finish with a Port. The wine version is more fun, but the milk test is equally illuminating.
So there you have it. Now you can assess and talk about a wine’s body in a more informed way. And one last note from Food & Wine: “A key principal for pairing is to match body with body so that the wine’s not too heavy or light for the dish and vice versa.” Cheers!