My DM's, texts and email inbox are riddled with "hey I'm at the liquor store – what should I get?"
This past weekend alone I was bombarded with photos of endless shelves of wine from friends in Kelowna, Edmonton, Vancouver and Toronto, all of which required assistance on the "right" bottle of wine to buy for that special dinner, or birthday presents.
It's nothing new that buying wine is incredibly intimidating. I don't enjoy going to a new liquor store, because I'm inevitably inundated with hundreds or thousands of labels.
It evokes a certain level of anxiety, as I know I'm going to need to do my research and inevitably spend minimum of an hour figuring out "what's good". Unless you're like me and love spending hours strolling the aisles, you'll likely want to be equipped with 5-10 "back pocket" bottles that'll meet your needs.
Here are my 5 suggestions for shopping at the liquor store to ensure you get something that's at the very least quaff-able.
Avoid kitschy marketing
Yes, I know, you're like everyone else who buys wine based on the label – stop it.
Trendy or sexy marketing is used for a reason – to draw you in, and mask the fact that the juice is at best mediocre. Avoid labels with animals, loud and pitchy font, or silhouettes of naked ladies.
Stop buying wine based on points
Oh, James Suckling said it's 95 points – so it must be good! Stop buying wine based on someone else's palate and decide for yourself.
Don't buy the wines that are built into cardboard pyramids
If a wine is built into some sort of fancy structure, with matching marketing posters and "on packs" (wine jargon for anything free with purchase – anything from mini liquor bottles to razors to chocolate) avoid at all costs.
You can bet all their dollars are going into what will lure you in, not the actual quality of the juice inside.
Do buy wine from regions you wouldn't normally
Portugal, Georgia, Uruguay, Isreal – you'll get far better bang for your buck and taste new varieties you didn't know existed.
Ask the staff what they're drinking
Chat up one of the staff, and get in the know tips on what's good – they'll know what's new, and have a few hidden gems to share.
How do you decide what wine to buy?
Comment below and let us know your tips!
