[Dan Ellis on Wine]On the hunt: Where to find good wine in Korea

Sometimes in Korea the problem is not which wine to buy but where to buy wine. Any wine. Coming from a country where you can now pick up a bottle at petrol stations, it can be something of a shock to be presented with such a wonderful array of fresh produce, unhealthy snacks, instant noodles and seaweed only to find a wine display featuring a 3-year-old Beaujolais Nouveau (the clue`s in the name), a bottle of Concord and if you are lucky, a White Zinfandel. Some luck.

So then, what are the options? They range from the convenient to the specialist, each with their own strengths and weaknesses but should offer a suitable solution to most wine-buying problems.

Option one offers a solution to a most persistent problem: the sudden and inexplicable desire for a bottle of wine or the realization you should pick up something for that party you are headed to. Your choice is simple -- the convenience store. Be it a 7/11 or a Family Mart, a Buy the Way or a GS-Mart or any of the countless iterations thereof, there is one thing to be said of these convenience stores -- er, they are very convenient.

The choice is usually limited, otherwise where would they find space for the ramyeon? But you can often find one reasonable bottle. Wines to look for include Argento, Hardys, Gato Negro and, at a push, Yellow Tail. These are, mostly, not wines I would recommend but they have the advantage of being simple and fruity and are not likely to offend.

The second option is that of the supermarkets, the likes of E-Mart and Homeplus. Much like you may be used to, they are plonked at the end of the shopping aisles so that when you have finished the chore of choosing groceries you can have the pleasure of buying alcohol. Often these areas are vaguely decorated to look like a specialist wine area, with opportunities for tasting and thumbing through the latest "Tears of God" wine manga.

The range, like the convenience stores is not going to set your world alight but what you can expect is a reasonable selection of New and Old World wine standards. Reasonably priced New Zealand wines are always worth a punt as are French Vins de Pays d`Oc wines (it will be in small print somewhere on the label).

Lastly we have the specialist wine shops that cater to those with a taste for something a little more eclectic. There are too many to mention here but notable examples are Shindong Wines (www.shindongwine.co.kr), Les Vins Maeils (www.lesvinsdemaeil.com) and Pieroth Wines (pierothwines.co.kr).

The first two are typical retail establishments. Pieroth is a case merchant that specializes in boutique wines and has the distinct advantage of offering free tastings. Shindong Wines outlets are typically found in Hyundai department stores and offer a reasonable selection of mid-priced wines. They also seem to be offering up a much better range of South American wines at the moment and are well worth investigating.

My personal favorite is Les Vins Maeils, however -- nowhere else in Korea can you get a Fino sherry or a Pinot Noir from Germany. It is this willingness to push boundaries that will see the wine market in Korea developing into a fully mature one and I urge everyone to support this experimentation.



Dan can be reached through his website at http://wineinkorea.blogspot.com -- Ed.