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5 Secrets to Buying Really Good, Affordable Table Wine

Follow these tips to pick great wines for less.

Reader's Digest Editors
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1. Look for wine from regions that aren’t as famous.

Land costs for growers in these areas are lower, and thus they can pass on their savings in the price of their wines. For example, opt for a wine from Paso Robles, California, rather than Napa.

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2. Choose lesser-known grape varietals.

Think Petite Sirah, not Cabernet Sauvignon. Not sure where to start? Go to iwinedb.com for some basic information, or read hints from bloggers on sites like IntoWine.com and Suite101.

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3. Buy wine from warmer climates, such as Spain, California, or Australia.

Successful grape harvests are more reliable there, keeping prices down.

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4. Try out wine festivals for great deals on samples.

Check out Localwineevents.com for wine events in your area.

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5. Before buying a bottle, ask the staff if it should be aged more.

If you want a wine to drink that night, don’t buy a bottle that’s meant to live in a cellar for five years—and a wine that's meant to be aged may often be more expensive.

Sources: U.S.News & World Report, LocalWineEvents.com, Cellarnotes.net, Internet Wine Database

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Your Comments

  • http://www.facebook.com/geo.thermal.161 Geo Thermal

    #5. Baloney

    Wine doesn’t age once it’s in the bottle.  Aging takes place in the barrel, before bottling.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Kevin-Haendiges/1346226305 Kevin Haendiges

      Wine not only does age in the bottle, it also improves with age. Fermentation is what occurs in the barrel, aging takes place in the bottle. Wine is a living thing, it constantly changes within the bottle, taking on different characteristics as it ages. If you truly believe that aging occurs only in barrels than stick to what you actually know, boxed wine.

      • Hydro-Force

        Amen

    • Hydro-Force

      Why do you think a bottle of 1961 Chateau Pétrus, sold for US $144,000 at Christie’s Wine Auction. btw…in terms of investment in Antique wines…Pétrus has yielded 14% of average annual return all the way through bull and bear markets. Beat that wall street.Â