However, all is not lost.
I can use this space to tell you some of the things people say to me in the supermarket wine aisle.
Actually, most of the time they're not saying these things to me, rather they're talking to themselves or to their shopping partner and I just happen to be lurking within listening distance.
However, the other day I'm just shuffling along, about to put a six-pack of cider in my trolley and a man came up to me, waved a bottle of Queen Adelaide in my face and said: "The day New Zealand wineries can give me a bottle this good, for this cheap, I'll buy it."
To which I smiled and launched into a spiel about economies of scale and how most of the good grape growing land in New Zealand has already gone and how to achieve revenue in valuable export markets, our wines must provide quality over quantity and that actually, Kiwi producers don't ever want to be lumped into the under-$10, bulk-and-boring, made-to-a-recipe wine market.
But no sooner had I said "economies" than his eyes glazed over and he was off like a shot to the dairy section.
And then there was the lady who absolutely refused to believe me when I told her that shiraz and syrah were the same grape with different names.
"No, they are totally different," she said.
I replied: "Yes, it's true that Australian shiraz will probably taste different to Hawke's Bay syrah, but that's simply a result of different growing conditions and winemaking, they're still made from the same grape."
"No, Yvonne, you're wrong. Syrah and shiraz are different grapes. You should look in a textbook or go and study grapes or something," she said.
"I did. For four years," I said. "And look -- I have my iPhone with me, I can Google it and prove it to you."
"Google isn't science." She huffed off to the salami tastings.
I'm also one of those creepy people who sidle up to strangers in the wine aisle and pass comment on their prospective purchases.
"That's a really lovely cabernet sauvignon," I said to a man at my local Countdown a few days ago.
"I tried it last week -- it's amazing with oxtail."
"Oh, yeah?" He eyed me suspiciously.
"I should email the lady who writes about wine in the newspaper and see what she has to say about that."
Winemaker for a DayPit your skills against the grapes by becoming a winemaker for a day at the gorgeous Matahiwi Estate Winery in the Wairarapa.
Held this year on Sunday August 31, part of the Wellington On A Plate festival, you'll learn how to blend wine to take home and enjoy a three-course meal by Kent Baddeley of 1024 restaurant in Hastings.
Sips of the week
Old Coach Road 'Lighter' Sauvignon Blanc 2014, $10-14
New release with only 9 per cent alcohol. Although many of the low-alcohol wines I've tasted have been on the wrong side of watery, this snappy little sauvignon is actually really good. Crafted at Seifried in Nelson, it smells like lemon, mandarin and a splash of passionfruit -- and all those things burst through on the palate. It's a tangy, tropical, very tasty wine.
Mills Reef Reserve Gimblett Gravels Merlot 2012, $25
Beautifully fruity, this wine is both dense and delightfully buoyant. Velvety and warm in the mouth, expect refined blackberry and spice characters on the finish. www.millsreef.co.nz
Elephant Hill Reserve Syrah 2012, $49
Crafted from syrah grown in their Gimblett Gravels and Te Awanga Vineyards and co-fermented with a splash of viognier, it's inky black in the glass and exotically scented with prune, pepper, blackberry and spice. There's a line of cocoa and savoury notes, chewy, elastic tannins and freshly ploughed clay characters on the finish. www.elephanthill.co.nz
Giesen Clayvin Marlborough Pinot Noir 2012, $59
With aromas of dried herb, cherry and wild hedge-berries, and spice and earth notes, it's still a youthful wine with a savoury edge, hints of leather and a ripe, toasty texture. Great potential for development in the cellar. www.finewine delivery.co.nz
