If you enjoy fine wine, now is a great time to be a wine buyer. Bargains are everywhere to be found. The sluggish economy has slowed down the sales of higher end wines which mean lower prices for wine drinkers – a lot lower.

Some higher end wines cost 30 percent less today than they did at this time last year. And some of the harder to find wines are suddenly available in San Antonio.

"There's a lot of good quality wine in the market, and it's changing things quite a bit," says Joe Baker with Gabriel's Wine & Spirits on Loop 1604.

That's good news for wine buyers because retailers can't afford to let the inventory sit on their shelves, and wine producers don't want to sit on old inventory when the next vintage release is right around the corner.

Another reason prices are dropping on wines in San Antonio is competition. New retailers like Twin Liquors and Spec's, who have moved into San Antonio have been effective in spurring price drops at the long-time retailers such as H-E-B and Gabriel's.

You've probably seen the ads where Ralph "the Wine Guy" at the H-E-B Plus at Blanco and 1604 says H-E-B has dropped the prices on hundreds of wines. They have, and they are very competitive.

H-E-B's Melina Mastrojohn says, "We want to be as competitive as we can." She also reminded me that at H-E-B when you buy six bottles of wine or champagne you get an additional 10 percent off.

Some of the deals include: Caymus Special Selections '06 was about $160 and is now about $99; Rudd Oakville Estate '05 was about $140, and now sales for $88; Duckhorn Merlot '06 Napa Valley was approximately $60, and it's now $40.

My advice is shop around. H-E-B has the cool 10 percent off when you buy six bottles of wine or champagne which you can mix and match. Twin Liquors runs another money saving "Twin" package deal that features a discount when you buy two of the same bottles of wine.

If I want to splurge on a bottle of wine that H-E-B carries, let's say the $99 Caymus Special Selections (I said splurge!), I would go for a six-pack of wines so to speak. Five would be low priced and then add in the Caymus and get a whopping $10 off the bottle in addition to the savings on the other five bottles. I don't feel so guilty buying the high dollar bottle, plus I get a good deal on the bargain wines as well.

I've got more wine ideas and great cooking segments with San Antonio's top chefs at www.goodtastewithtanji.com. I'll see you there.