Buying wine can be confusing.

Lots of people who are looking for a wine storage solution are just starting out in terms of building their wine collection. They know that they want to buy, store and possible age a growing number of bottles and that they’ll need a practical and effective way to store their valuable vino, so they set out to purchase a wine cooler or wine refrigerator to do the job. That’s great, but sometimes people get the cart before the horse so to speak and they solve the storage problem before they even know much about how to choose what wines to buy!

With that in mind, here are a few basic wine-buying tips.

The first thing to note is that there are four types of wine that you’ll be able to choose from. These include white wines, red wines, blush wines and dessert wines.

Red wines come in types like merlot, pinot noir, sauvignon and zinfandel and are most often are used with dinner. White wines are things like chardonnay and Riesling and are common for meals that take place during the day or that are lighter. Blush wines are typically used for picnics and don’t make very good dinner fare. And then the desert ones – like ports of Sherries – are usually had with pastries and other sweet foods.

Now that you know about types of wines, now you need to understand how to decide which type is the best for you and the occasion. People use a “Three P’s” system when it comes to deciding which wine they want to buy.

The first “P” refers to the price of the wine, which is obvious – price will always have an effect on whether you purchase something or not. In fact, there are many types of wine that can be bought for as little as $15 – good wines, too, not cheap wine.

The next “P” usually stands for preference, which is a very important detail when it comes to picking out wines. When throwing a party always remember that strong wines are an acquired taste and people unfamiliar with wines may find them to be too much. It’s a better idea to stick to the “softer” red wines like merlot or pinot noir just to make sure that everyone can drink it. And if you want a white wine instead, a chardonnay or pinot blanc would be the best option.

The last “P” stands for pairing which is maybe more important than anything because a bad wine can ruin an entire meal. That refers to whatever you’re going to be drinking the wine with – that meal you’re going to pair it with. White wines go best with lighter meals like fish or chicken while red wines are best suited for meals that contain red meat.

Whatever you decide, following the “Three P’s” is a great procedure to follow when buying wines. And once you’ve acquired a few bottles, then you’ll need a place to put them….