One of life's great pleasures for a wine lover is to find a good wine at a bargain price.

	Natacha Pisarenko, Associated Press A worker lugs freshly harvested grapes from the fields in Argentina, a source of good wines. Click photo for larger image.

If you live in Pennsylvania, however, the price of every bottle has been increased by a $1.30 handling fee plus 18 per cent tax (the so-called Johnstown Flood Tax, which was originally added in 1936 to help flood victims but which today goes into a state slush fund). And then, on top of everything, the state sales tax is added.

This makes finding good values more challenging. It is true that the state has begun using its buying power to negotiate deals with wineries to buy their overstock, much as Filene's Basement does with fashion. These "Chairman's Selections," sold only at stores designated as "specialty" stores, generally offer deep discounts. They are the first place to look for bargains.

Another way to find good values in wine is to venture off the well-traveled highway of the most popular grape varieties. In the trade, this is called ABC, which stands for "anything but chardonnay" or "anything but cabernet." A willingness to try new grape varieties will reward not only your wallet but also your palate.

In white wine, look at those made from the sauvignon blanc grape.

The most expensive examples of this grape are made in the Loire Valley in France and are labeled Sancerre or Pouilly Fume, but you can find sauvignon blanc made in the same stye for half the price by looking at wines from other areas. Even France offers a dry sauvignon blanc in the under $10 range. It comes from the Bordeaux region, better known for red wine, and is labeled Entre Deux Mers.

Other fine examples come from the Marlborough region of New Zealand and from various wine regions in the United States.

Another white grape worth exploring is riesling. The driest and fullest are from the Old World wine regions of Alsace, France, Germany and Austria. More reasonably priced rieslings come from Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

For red wine bargains, I generally look to Australia. Australia's tremendous overproduction has resulted in a wine glut that has sent prices plummeting. The Aussies love to blend grape varieties to achieve a wine of great character and low cost. Whether it is shiraz-cabernet or cabernet-merlot, these well-structured reds are full of juicy fruit flavors and smooth tannins and are entirely food-friendly.

Another good choice is a California zinfandel, an intensely flavored, fruit-forward wine with notes of black pepper and spice. Zinfandel, while not a fashionable grape, delivers a lot of bang for the buck. For practical purposes, it is not grown outside of California and the best comes from the Dry Creek region of Sonoma County.

South America offers a treasure chest of wine bargains. Look for the malbec grape grown in Argentina and labeled "malbec." This grape produces a loosely structured, Bordeaux style wine that is pleasant and quaffable.

Chilean reds are attractive. The Chileans have had success with the carmenere grape, originally from Bordeaux. They also excel at making Bordeaux-style blends from merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc grapes.

If we lived in a state with free-trade wine shops, I would recommend that you work with the staff of your local wine store to learn more about what each has tasted and found exceptional. I have found the sales people at such shops outside of Pennsylvania to be the best possible source of what to expect from a particular bottle.

Unfortunately, there are relatively few such knowledgeable clerks in our state system, so your alternative is to follow the wine press recommendation or to experiment on your own.

I think you will be surprised at what pleasures await you when you venture off the beaten wine path. Look for the same alternatives when confronted with a restaurant wine list.

Here are some fine values on sale in state liquor stores today:

Whites

Casillero del Diablo Sauvignon Blanc 2005, Chile, $7.99 (until August 20 and $9.99 thereafter). PLCB #9983. This is a crisp and classy wine with green fruit flavors and some floral notes in the bouquet.

Omaka Springs Sauvignon Blanc 2005, Marlborough, New Zealand, $7.99 (A Chairman's Selection, available while supplies last at this very reduced price.) PLCB #27380. This wine has classic sauvignon blanc grassiness and mineral aromas which taste of grapefruit and gooseberries in the mouth.

Chateau Bonnet, Entre Deux Mers, 2004, France, $9.99 (until August 20 and $11.99 thereafter). PLCB #21449. This is a classic Bordeaux Blanc, a blend of sauvignon blanc and semillon grapes which produces a crisp and refreshing acidity with apricot overtones.

Yalumba Riesling, 2005, South Australia, $10.49. PLCB #27241. There are floral overtones to the zesty citrus flavors that make this New World riesling a serious wine.

Reds

Antis Malbec 2003, Argentina, $8.99 (while supplies last). PLCB # 28656. Ripe berries and cherry aromas. A touch of oak adds roundness in the mouth. A solid value at this price.

Valdubon Consecha 2004, Ribera del Duero, Spain, $8.99 (Chairman's Selection, while supplies last). PLCB # 26882. A young and unpretentious wine made without aging in oak. It is medium-bodied, soft and smooth.

Coming to PLCB specialty stores in mid August:

Murphy Goode Pedroncelli Zinfandel 2001, Sonoma County, CA, $8.99 (Chairman's Selection). PLCB # 13757.

Penfolds Winemaker Reserve, Shiraz 2001, South Australia, $12.99 (Chairman's Selection). PLCB # 27326. Lots of jammy blueberries and spice on the nose and weight in the mouth.