Andrea Immer's 2004 Wine Buying Guide for Everyone

Book excerpt: The Ultimate Buying Guide to America’s Most Popular and Accessible Wines The first guide to buying wine that grades the top-selling premium wines in stores and restaurants: popular supermarket brands, trade-up brands, and super-premium labels. Andrea Immer, one of America’s foremost wine authorities, surveyed thousands of wine professionals and ordinary consumers, who assess what really matters most–taste and value for the money. She also provides: •Best-of lists: The top performing wines •Immer Best Bets: Andrea Immer’s top picks for every major buying dilemma, from inexpensive crowd pleasers to blue-chip choices for business entertaining •“The Top Fifty Wines You’re Not Drinking”: These wines are less well known, but offer good availability and great value •Immersion Course: Quick and easy label-reading lessons to give you instant buying expertise •Kitchen Countertop (and Fridge) SurvivorTM grades: How long will the wine keep after it’s opened? Now you’ll know the wines’ “freshness window” after opening.