Whether it's a romantic date or a catch up dinner with old friends, a bottle of wine is always a nice treat to accompany your meal.
However, if you aren't a wine buff, a restaurant's jargon-filled menu might not make it easy to pick out that perfect bottle. Thankfully, Carlos Santos, the Wine and Operations Manager for Humble Grape, has shared some helpful tips and tricks to find a wine that will pair with your food.
Not only that, the expert shared a clever way that can sometimes help you identify which bottle of wine is the best value for money, reports the Mirror.
"When choosing a bottle of wine from a menu in a restaurant, the most important thing to remember is that you don't have to necessarily choose the most expensive wine to ensure you're getting a great one," he told the Mirror. "It is ok to order the cheapest wine on the menu because the best wine in the world is the one that you like."
The expert went on to explain where on the wine menu you'll likely find the best value bottles.
"A good rule of thumb for navigating a wine list is to look at the second or third wines down from the top, as these are going to be the best value wines," he continued.
"They won't necessarily be cheapest or the most expensive, but those that sit second or third are usually great value for your money."
And if you're still not sure what to go for, Carlos urges people to chat to the restaurant's sommelier.
Carlos explains that wine is their passion, and they're more than happy to chat no matter your knowledge on the subject.
"Very often on the restaurant floor, people can be a little shy when talking about what they like and don't like, but nobody in the world loves talking about wine more than sommeliers," he explained. "If you ask us about wine, we will talk about wine until the cows come home.
"Before ordering your wine, talk to your sommelier, tell them which wines you've had recently that you've loved and which ones you didn't like, and that will help them find a wine that is suitable for you."
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