As wine shop owners and wine consumers, we have tasted a lot of wine over the last five years. I mean, a lot. We have tasted countless wines in all kinds of formats from blind tasting during the judging for the North Idaho Wine Rodeo, to weekly tastings with distributors, to trying a previously unknown production while out to dinner. There are always surprises on both sides of the equation. Sometimes you're disappointed by a wine you thought you'd love, sometimes the one you dread to try turns out to be a pleasant epiphany.

These are some of the best surprises, the wines you expect little from that end up being not only something eminently drinkable, but those you want to purchase for your own consumption and maybe even placement on the shelf in our shop, or even to include in our wine club. Interestingly these surprises are not always price driven. It is easy for every wine consumer to recall a wine that is priced in the value category, which is relative for each of us, that pleases beyond the dollar price paid, but some of the even more amazing ones are those that come from a producer we previously did not like, or a region we are not fond of, or even at times done in a style we don't prefer.

Regular readers will no doubt recognize that I am not a big fan of oak, really in any varietal, but occasionally we will taste a wine with quite prominent oak treatment and flavors only to say "wow that is really good". Similarly the big opulent California style Chardonnay is rarely something we will seek out, but then in a blind or other format we will try one and understand not only why it is made that way but also why it is so sought after; all while knowing that our normal preference is balance, restrained and elegant Chardonnay in the style of Burgundy.

It's true of growing regions as well. I have found recently that Oregon Pinot Noir for instance is not as drinkable as I would like in its youth. Pinot from Oregon has always been known for fairly high acid due to the cold nights in the Willamette, but recently it seems to be overemphasized showing up as "dill pickle" essence on the nose and thinness on the palate, then the next day a distributor will bring in an offering from this appellation and bang! There it is you understand exactly why they are made that way and how the whole package comes together.

Writing an article in the paper can be tricky business at times, and we always try to stay away from bad reviews of wines and wineries we just don't care as much for. In short it isn't fair to disparage an offering for taste differences and in fact preferences are in fact what makes the wine industry go, we each like something different. But the pleasant surprise comes when we try something from a producer we normally don't appreciate and say to ourselves, "They nailed that wine it is delicious".

Finally the price of a wine is sure to create surprises more perhaps than any other area or criteria in the wine world. We all have tasted $9 wines we have loved and $90 ones that have disappointed. Obviously we feel much better after the $9 experience.

We find it vital though to keep on trying new wines, new wineries, new growing regions, and new price points, but beyond trying just new things perhaps the hardest decision is to go back and re-taste, bottles from those we have previously not liked. There are many ways to do this too without plunking down good money to buy a full bottle of a wine we are skeptical of.

Explore the by-the-glass list at your favorite restaurants by having a deal with yourself that you are not going to order your favorite that you always order. Attend tastings for wineries that normally are not your favorite. Join wine clubs with wide variety of growing region, varietal, and price points forcing you to try some wines you would normally not seek out, and at all costs avoid red only and white only clubs. Finally, never avoid asking your favorite wine professional for something completely different! As wine professionals we all get to know our customers and are not immune to recommending the same old things because we know that you like them. At the creative level though, we love the art of helping our customers find the best of surprises.

If there is a topic you would like to read about or questions on wine you can email George@thedinnerpartyshop.com or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d'Alene Press.

George Balling is co-owner with his wife Mary Lancaster of the dinner party a wine and table top decor shop in Coeur d'Alene by Costco. George is also the managing judge of The North Idaho Wine Rodeo, and writes frequently for the online version of Coeur d'Alene magazine at www.cdamagazine.com you can learn more about the dinner party at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com. You can get all of these articles as well as other great wine tips by friending us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/dinnerpartyshop.