The art of wine John Borrell's guide to success

Choosing wine in shops and restaurants in Poland is becoming more fun - and ironically more difficult - as the choice widens and prices inch down.

So how do you distinguish between the ranks of Chateau-this-and-that-look-alikes on a supermarket shelf, or make an informed choice between a restaurant's house wine and the dozen or so reds on the list?

A little knowledge can go a long way

Generally, although not always, you get what you pay for. Some 60 percent of all wine sold in Poland costs less than zł.10 a bottle and more than 90 percent retails at zł.20 or less. High duties and taxes, amongst other things, mean that the vineyard price for a zł.10 bottle can't be much more than zł.3 and for a zł.20 bottle something like zł.7 a bottle. Don't expect to find any gems at these prices.

It gets more interesting from zł.20 upwards, with an increasingly good choice in the zł.30 to zł.50 price range, particularly of wines from the New World. This basically means from the southern hemisphere, and if confronted by a choice of similarly priced, same grape wines from Europe and the New World, the latter generally represents your best choice.

This is not just my antipodean bias showing through. New World wines have done spectacularly well in all non wine-producing European countries in the past decade, basically because southern hemisphere wineries have paid much more attention than others to what the average wine drinker wants.

For reds read fruity, medium to full-bodied and well-rounded wines, with not too much acidity or tannin in the finish. For whites read fruity. For both read good sugar levels. For both read a liking for oak; not too much, but enough to impart vanilla flavors.

Since oak barrels cost more than E500 each and can only be used effectively two or three times, the traditional methods of oaking wine used in France and elsewhere in Europe are quite expensive. Not bound by either tradition or laws like those in France, Australia oaks its cheaper wines simply by inserting oak planks or baskets of oak chips into huge stainless steel tanks.

The result of winemaking innovation like this - the French regard it as heresy - is that Australia has made huge inroads into France's best traditional markets. A decade or so ago, Australia had just four percent of the market in Britain. Now it has more than 20 percent and occupies the top spot. During the same period France has seen its market share tumble from nearly 40 percent to 20 percent. It's a similar story in the US and in Scandinavia.

Not just Australia is producing wines that consumers want. In fact, the country with the fastest growing wine sales in Poland is Chile, and the reason is good everyday drinking wines of consistent quality at a reasonable price. Most shops and supermarkets have an example or two in the zł.20 to zł.30 range and if this was my price range, Chile would probably be my first choice.

If it must be European wine, then look to regions which are less famous than Bordeaux, Tuscany or Rioja. Some of the most interesting and best value French wines come from the Languedoc. If you like Rioja but are put off by the prices, then look for Tempranillo from Navarra or Valdepenas. It's the same grape as in Rioja. Chianti-lovers will probably be surprised to learn that Montepulciano is basically the same grape as the Sangiovese from which Chianti is made, and that there are wonderful earthy and keenly priced Montepulcianos from Abruzzo.

Much of the above applies to choosing wine in a restaurant but the following may also be useful to remember:

Good restaurants generally have good house wines. If they don't tell you what it is, then ask. It might be something you are fond of, and why pay twice as much for something else? If they don't know, or won't tell you exactly what the house wine is, don't order it. There's a good chance it will be cheap and nasty.

If the restaurant knows what it is doing with wine and has a good selection of wines by the glass, this can be a good option. Buying wine by the glass means generally that it comes from an already open bottle. Providing the bottle has not been open too long - more than 24 hours for example - the wine will probably have improved as a result of contact with the air.

Nearly all wine benefits from an hour or two of contact with air and swirling it around in your glass will certainly help the process of "opening up" the wine.

If you frequent a particular restaurant and like a particular wine then phone them ahead of time - a few hours is best - and ask them to open the bottle you plan drinking later on. You'll be pleased that you did.

Like to know more about wine and become more confident at choosing, storing and serving it? Then join John Borrell at the Warsaw Business Journal's winter wine school at the Boathouse Restaurant in Warsaw on Saturday, September 27 for the first of six seminars and tutored tastings. All will be held at the Boathouse Restaurant, Wał Miedzeszynski 389 A, starting at 12:30 on the last Saturday of each month.The price is zł.95 per person and includes the seminar and tutored tasting, course notes, and a buffet lunch prepared by executive chef Luc Dernacourt. If you'd like to join Luc for the trencherman's three course lunch, the price is zł.150 per person, inclusive of wines.

WarsawBusiness Journal's

Winter Wine School's first class will take place on

Saturday, September 27, at 12:00.

Reserve your place by calling the Boathouse at 22-616 3223

or John BorrelL at 058 684 0790