The joys of wine collecting.

While it will never beat a retirement fund as an investment, collecting wine can be a fun and rewarding hobby.

It's not really hard or expensive to get started, either. All it takes is a basic appreciation of wine, a proper place to store and catalog your collection and a desire to learn.

Before you move heavily into collecting, you need to find a good place to store your wine. Since most of us don't have a full-fledged wine cellar in our homes, finding a place that is cool, dry and dark is essential so your wines won't turn into expensive vinegar.

An empty closet will work nicely, as will a space under a stairwell. If the children have moved out, a spare bedroom will work wonderfully as a "wine cellar."

Manufacturers have created modular racks so you can fill any space you have with proper wine racks. Bordex is a good example. They have a product that can be stacked in endless configurations so you can take advantage of any space you have. The best part is you can add to the racks as your collection grows.

You also want to have some way to catalog your wines. Index cards will work just fine. If you have a budget, consider some Cellartex Clips that allow you to add descriptions to your wines. For example, you can mark sections by varietals, appelations, vintages or individual wineries. There are also software programs out on the market to help you manage your collection.

If you're just starting out, here are some helpful tips for creating your collection:

1. Don't let professional scorings by a wine expert influence you. Always sample at least one bottle of wine before buying a whole case.
2. Don't buy wines because they are expensive. That doesn't mean they're good. In fact, you can find some real gems that are fairly inexpensive. In many cases, treasure hunting for the terrific wine that's under $10 can be far more rewarding than stocking up a couple bottles of $50 bottles.
3. Don't buy more than you can drink. There's really no reason to have a 500 bottle collection if you only drink a couple bottles a month. Wines will eventually pass their prime and then you're stuck with a large collection of wine vinegar.
4. Establish a good relationship with a single store. Shopping around won't necessarily get you a better deal and you'll miss out on the specials and real gems a local store may have in stock that others don't.
5. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it is. If a wine is being sold at an unheard of price, chances are it was damaged or store improperly.
6. Pay attention to storage. A great wine will become worthless if exposed to sun, damp or high humidity. By the time you get wine it's already been through a lot, including being bounced around in a semi trailer and being left on a loading dock. Don't let the wine suffer more once it's in your own home.