Great wine is all about real estate. The French coined the term terroir to explain why certain locales produced better vin than others, and before grape varieties became brands unto themselves, it was usually the name of a well-situated town—Sancerre, for example, or Puligny-Montrachet—that gave a wine cachet.

Think about wine just as you would about real estate. The best place to find undervalued property is in outlying neighborhoods, and the same holds true for undervalued wine. There&amp;#39;s plenty of talent and technology to go around these days, which makes it possible to drink the blue-chip stuff at off-brand prices.

All you need is a lesson in geography.

A quick glance at a map of Piedmont, Italy, for instance, reveals a region called Roero, which borders on Barolo. Roero and Barolo reds are both made from the Nebbiolo grape, and in many cases they&amp;#39;re indistinguishable in everything but price. It&amp;#39;s even possible to drink affordably in the legendary (and astronomically expensive) precincts of Burgundy, where everyone grows Chardonnay and Pinot Noir on the same sliver of limestone-rich earth.

With a little exploration, you can find bargains anywhere grapes are grown. In years past, you couldn&amp;#39;t always trust the second-string appellations, but today their wines are on a par with those from hallowed Grand Cru grounds, thanks to younger winemakers branching out in search of cheaper real estate. Just get in now, before these neighborhoods really blow up.—David Lynch