Rule 1: Drink what ever wine is you like the best. Now this sounds quite obvious, doesn't it? You could be shocked at how many wine drinkers get caught up in the notion that only select wines can be drunk with a select meal, this just isn't so! We all have our own wine preferences and when it comes to such wines we all know the wine we like to dine with.

Of course, if you do your research you will find various opinions and most of them will say the same thing, which certain wine goes with certain foods, but at the end of the day the choice of what wine to drink is really up to you, no matter what any review or guide says.

Rule 2: White wine with white meat or fish and red wine with red meat? Not always! Those who know anything about wine or eat out quite a lot will know that white wine should accompany any fish dish and a red wine should go with meat. But being stringent with the rules takes out all the joy of choosing a good wine you truly enjoy.

The pivotal point here is to have faith in your own sense's and what you consider as a good choice. A wine should do 1 of 2 things when dining; complement or contrast. Not every dish containing fish is done the same way, so with this in mind why then should the white wine with fish rule be stuck to so much?

A good thing to do is consider the dish you are thinking about ordering or cooking, the way it is cooked, the various spices and seasonings added, then when you have considered the following choose a wine that will complement those elements or contrasts and you should end up with far more intense flavours and tastes.

Rule 3: Always read a wine label. Wines from different parts of the worlds are all different, again this sounds obvious, even the popular wines from merlots to Shiraz's and Cabernet's to zinfandels are all different in the way they are produced. A European merlot will be different from the merlot wines found in the states and Australia. A prudent move would be to really think about what you are going to order or what you have decided to cook and how it will be cooked.

In cooking there are many herbs and other things added to the dish, so the decision over what wine to have should follow this train of thought to make sure the wine will blend in well with these various flavours, if this is followed correctly then the meal should be such a memorable experience.

Apart from trying to find out where the wine was produced, it is also smart move to check out some local wineries and vineyards. On the wine label, the more abundant the information the better the wine will be. This will of course lead to one of the most deciding factors when choosing a wine, the price. The finer the wine the more expensive the wine is likely to be.