With many wine sales to choose from at this time of year, it’s always useful to know how to pick out the best. Simply follow a few handy tips below to ensure that you get top quality wines at bargain prices and steer clear from all the rubbish that inevitably will be lining the supermarket shelves.

Firstly, beware of the wine sale scams. Unfortunately, some wine sales aren’t as genuine as they may first seem. In order to display the best possible discount, some retailers have a nasty habit of upping their list prices immediately before they discount them. The best way to avoid this is to keep an eye on the prices in the lead up to the wine sale.

Similarly, it’s worth looking out for a discounted wine, rather than wine bought in especially for a wine sale as the quality will be that much better. Again, the best way to do this is to try to familiarise yourself with the wines available prior to the wine sale.

It’s always good to choose wines that you like. Although you can get some great deals in wine sales, you can also end up wasting your money on wines that you don’t really want. So don’t just buy what’s on discount, instead look out for wines that you know you will enjoy and that way you won’t be left feeling disappointed.

Having said all of that, wine sales are a good time to experiment with your wines. So if you fancy trying a wine that you think you might like or that is a variation on what you normally would buy, then a wine sale is the time to do this.

Finally watch out for the rubbish. In particular, look out for any white and rosé wines that are in a wine sale as they may be past their best. Although wine does not have a best before date, most whites and roses should be drunk within 12 months so any vintage earlier than 2006 is best avoided.