City's supermarkets offer great value wines if you know what to look for

Not knowing the difference between bad, good or great wine can make casual wine shoppers reluctant to take a leap of faith. But for most of my drinking life, I have enjoyed bottles of wine that cost no more than about HK$70. So I am convinced that with a little inside knowledge the average Hong Kong supermarket would reveal affordable wines ranging from drinkable to excellent.

To put this theory to the test, I persuaded Charles Curtis, a Master of Wine and former head of wine for Christie's in Asia and the Americas, to go shopping with me at a branch of ParknShop in Central. As we survey the shelves I ask if there are tips or tricks to quickly identify a potentially good wine from the label alone. The short answer is yes and no.

Don't be put off if sulphites are indicated on the label. If a wine doesn't contain sulphites it is "probably going to be disgusting", according to Curtis. The alcohol content can also be misleading. "They have a half a per cent leeway in terms of labelling. So it's not a solid indicator."

Knowing the logos of some of the more famous producers can help, too, and he urges beginners to do a little homework to familiarise themselves with the biggest names.

The most important advice for fledgling wine connoisseurs, however, would seem to be that practice makes perfect. "My motto has always been 'the more you drink, the more you know' and so I am a big advocate of never drinking the same thing twice," Curtis says.

It doesn't take long before he spots something. "Gunderloch is a really well-known name. This is their least expensive wine, but it's under HK$90," he says. "Gunderloch is really well known for more famous wines, but the entry level is a great place to start."