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If ordering a bottle of wine for a date or friends is a harrowing experience, here is some expert advice on how to decipher a wine list, be surer of your selections and drink something you actually enjoy without overpaying.
Ask the sommelier (some-el-yay) or the server for advice - its what they do. According to Alex Zink of the New York Wine Co., “Sommeliers are trained professionals whose sole job is to make sure you are happy with your wine selection. Why not use them as you’re best resource? Don’t be intimidated to tell them your price range and what you are looking for.”
One way to get in good with Sommeliers is to ask about their favorite wines. The sommeliers often had input in designing the list and take great pride in it. In Jay McInerny’s book, A Hedonist in the Cellar: Adventures in Wine
, he writes, “If sommeliers have a consistent point of snobbery, it’s a slight disdain or at least weariness with Chardonnay. Tease yours by asking about Austrian Rieslings. All sommeliers love Austrian Rieslings. Then, bring it on home. Ask him to recommend a German Riesling.” Check online – An increasing number of restaurants are putting their wine lists online which allows you to do some research and even make wine selections beforehand. If a particular bottle sounds interesting to you, cross reference it with Wine Searcher, where you can see the retail prices of that wine across the country.
Be obscure - Look for lesser-known wines and value grapes: Good Bordeaux, Napa and Champagne will always be expensive but very high quality wines are coming from places and grapes with a little less cache and much lower prices. Order something unfamiliar such as: Southern Italian red wines, especially Primitivo and Negroamaro from Puglia and Nero D’avola from Sicily - they represent great values. Also try Malbec from Argentina, Carmenere from Chile, Pinotage from South Africa and Monastrell from Spain.
