Wine Shop Hacks

Sharp Sipper
Sep 6, 2018 · 5 min read

Life hacks for when it comes to buying wine

If you’re new to wine, it can sometimes be overwhelming. Hundreds of bottles line the shelves of seemingly unknown origins. Disoriented, you try to navigate your way through this bottle ridden labyrinth by the tiny signage of countries. Racking your brain, trying to remember that wine you had last Tuesday at that restaurant you like or was it at your friend’s house. You swore you would remember, damn, why didn’t you take a picture of the bottle before you started drinking it. Frantically, searching through the many wine apps on your smartphone, you refuse to ask for help from one of the store clerks. They won’t know what you want. Plus, if you can leave this place with as little human contact as possible, it will all be worth while, regardless of the bottle you choose.

“organized bottles on shelf” by Scott Warman on Unsplash

Now stop. Take a breath. Its all going to be okay, lets work on some easy life hacks for when it comes to buying wine.

Okay, so what are you looking for?

Here are simple tips for pairing with meals:

What grows together goes together

There is a reason why Italian wines go perfectly with Italian dishes, In certain food cultures they have already figured out what goes together and it usually continues along the practice of balance. Italian food is very acidic but so is their wine. A good example of this would be a Valpolicella, Chianti, or a Barbera with a traditional Italian pizza.

Power

When you are going to have a heavy dish usually like red meats and hardy pasta dishes, its best to pair power with power. We tend to see bold reds with bold cuts of meats. The classic for this would be Shiraz with a peppercorn steak. The peppery power that shiraz packs is perfect as it can stand up to the bold flavours of umami, pepper, and salt of the peppercorn steak.

Contrast

I know, I just said power with power but sometimes the power can be the acid, one notable exception would be high acid wine with heavy cheesy dishes. It creates an effect of coating your tongue in oily goodness. The wine then acts as a refresher to clean up your palette by cutting through the oil, preparing you for the next bite. An example would be the french cuisine Raclette paired with Chablis. *Seriously, look it up. Thank me later*

Don’t know whats cooking

Sometimes we don’t know what our friend is making for dinner, if this is the case, your safest bet will be to grab something with simple flavours. What do I mean when I say simple? Simple wines tend to be those that have seen little to no oak aging, usually they are fermented in inert vessels which doesn’t impart any extra tannins or flavour. They are usually lighter in body and slightly higher in acid. Making it easier to pair with many dishes.

Some examples would be:

Fresh & Bright Reds: Beaujolais, Gamay, Pinot Noir, Grenache, Carignan.

Crisp & Refreshing Whites: Pinot Gris (or Grigio), Vino Verde, Sauvignon Blanc, Albarino, Melon de Bourgogne, Trebbiano.

“four desserts wall decor” by rawpixel on Unsplash

Sweet

I get a few people asking about sweet wine and how to tell if its sweet when the label seemingly doesn’t. Instead of trying to remember all the different names and categories, try checking out the alcohol percentage. In wine making during fermentation sugars turn to alcohol the longer they sit and the hotter the vessel gets. We tend to see lower abv% (alcohol percentage) in cooler climates and in sweeter wines. If you find something that’s about 11% or higher, chances are its a dry wine.

Pairing with a dessert? In this case the wine must be as sweet as the dessert or sweeter. When you place sugar on your tongue, your receptors try to balance what your tasting. So, a wine will end up tasting sour and acidic, if its not sweet enough to battle the sugar. Another idea would be pairing a sweet dessert style wine with a salty dish like the classic Sauterne and Roquefort blue cheese, this is usually a people pleaser.

Satellite Cities

We often like to buy big brand or big-name items. Champagne, Borolo, Chateauneuf du Pape, etc. And while, the prestige of the name and history is exciting, you are mostly paying for exactly that. I love to talk to my customers about satellite cities. These wine makers that are on the outskirts of these big name areas use the same grapes and work extra hard so that they can make a name for themselves. These areas that are lesser known will save you a ton of money while keeping quality.

For Chateauneuf du Pape, there is Gigondas and Vacqueyras known as “the poor mans Chateauneuf du Pape” these wines are full of backbone and power. Champagne, has almost always been seen as a luxury good. It has been deemed as a traditional method of sparkling wine. Keep your eye out for méthode champenoise or traditional method. Cremant, for example, is made using the traditional method but in other parts of the country.

Research that bottle you like

In Alberta, we privatized liquor retail stores in 1993, making us the first province in Canada to have this private retail model. The AGLC (Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission) is responsible to uphold the regulations for alcohol sold in Alberta. They have a distribution site which is where all the stores in Alberta must order from. If you are not a retail store, this site can show you a map and index of where you can find what you’re looking for. This will save you so much time and is especially helpful for when your looking for something that may not exist in your region.

www.liquorconnect.com

“group of people tossing wine glass” by Kelsey Chance on Unsplash

Be Friendly

Last but probably one of the most important of all. Come chat with us, ask us questions, inquire about whatever. I swear we don’t bite. We only sip. Cheesy? Has to be to go with our wine. Okay, I’ll stop but seriously, we took this job because we WANT to help you pick something you’re going to love. At least this is how we feel about it at Craft Cellars in Calgary. I haven’t been in this industry for too long, but I have met some incredible people through this method. It is so motivational when someone I helped from a week earlier, comes back to tell me how their tasting experience went. This also allows us to get to know your palette, so that next time we can help you with another great find.

Tchin Tchin!

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