How to Shop for Wine

Even top Sommelier’s can not know all the wines and styles the world has to offer and so we all depend to some degree on the knowledge of others.  When selecting the wines for my flights on this website I relied partly on research and partly on the fact that the stores I shop at always have very professional staff that have great knowledge of their products.  So here are some tips for your next wine shopping trip:

1. Give a price range to alert the staff person as to what you are comfortable spending.
2. You have a smart phone! Use it!  Start taking photos of the wines you like and show them to staff.  If they don’t have the exact bottle they will at least know what you style you like.
3. What are you going to eat with the wine?  Or what charcuterie pairings do you have in mind?
4. Find a consistent wine shop and get to know the staff well.  Go to tasting there, take a wine course there!
5. Learn a bit about how to read and interpret wine labels.  I recommend an excellent book that was part of a Wine Appreciation Course I took.  It is written by Kevin Zraly and is entitled Windows on the World: A Complete Wine Course.
6. The Wine Teacher will respond to any wine question you send him within 48 hours!  Just click on the Submit a Question on the top of the homepage!