Wine buying

There are many good wines that can be purchased for less than $10.00.  Before spending the money on a more expensive bottle, one should be able to appreciate what a less expensive bottle has to offer.  If you are just a beginner it is more practical to hone your skills on a value priced bottle.  When you become in-tune to the more specific flavors and aromas you will most likely get greater enjoyment from a more complex, expensive wine.

There are big name wineries that consistently produce good wine in large quantities making it very affordable.  Here are a few I always enjoy:

Robert Mondovi

Kendall Jackson

Ravenswood

Ecco Domani

Chateau St. Michelle

Beringer

Rosemont

And many, many, more!

There are many smaller wineries that are less known but also produce good wines, many times they have to under price their wines to remain competitive with the larger companies giving the consumer more bang for their buck.  Don't be afraid to try a wine you haven't heard of, there are many avenues on the internet to research wine if you want to insure that your selection will be a good one before buying. 

Wine spectator and others have a system for rating wine based on scoring up to 100.  The scores can be thought of as a percentage grade. 70-80 is ok, 80-90 is good, and 90-100 is very good to excellent.  Generally when you get a bottle with a score of 85 you are getting a good bottle of wine.  Many wine shops and liquor stores will place the score next to the displayed bottles, be sure if you are choosing a wine based on that criteria that the year of the wine you are buying, matches that of the wine that has been scored.  Quality of grapes that are used in wine is based on the climate and the growing season, thus making the year of the wine of significant importance.  (A 2001 wine could be excellent whereas the same wine from grapes grown in 2000 may not be as good.)  

Almost every liquor store with a large wine selection or wine shop will have their own "in house wine expert" these people are usually well versed in the wines that they carry.  If you ask for advice on buying a good wine for less than $10.00 and can be specific about the type of wine you are looking for, they should be able to point you in the right direction.  If you don't specify (less than $10.00) they may direct you to a more expensive bottle of wine.

The year of the wine you are buying, matches that of the wine that has been scored.  Quality of grapes that are used in wine is based on the climate and the growing season, thus making the year of the wine of significant importance.  (A 2001 wine could be excellent where as the same wine from grapes grown in 2000 may not be as good.)  

Almost every liquor store with a large wine selection or wine shop will have their own "in house wine geek" these people are usually well versed in the wines that they carry.  If you ask for advice on buying a good wine for less then $10.00 and can be specific about the type of wine you are looking for, they should be able to point you in the right direction.  If you don't specify (less then $10.00) they may direct you to a more expensive bottle of wine.

The Five S's of Wine Tasting

See

When seeing your wine, it is best to tilt the glass toward the table at a 45 degree angle.  It is easiest to observe the color on a white background.  Many restaurants will have a white table cloth, or just placing a piece of white paper on the table will work. When seeing the wine, you will be looking for sediment, color, any cork or debris.  A young red wine will be very deep red in color, as the wine ages the color starts to fade and sediment will start to appear in the bottle, a more mature wine may have a more brownish tone for this reason.