The deeper you dive down the wine rabbit hole, the more expensive it gets. It doesn’t happen instantaneously, but if you’re in it long enough, it’s inevitable that your palate will change.

I hated opihi when I was a child. Now? I’ll fashion my hashi into little spears to stab your hand over the last piece — and I know it’s Asian blasphemy. I was brought up to not even look at the last serving.

How about the last time you ate a Lunchables? I’m willing to bet it was not as recent as your last raid of a charcuterie board. As tastes change, things usually get more expensive.

There is a gradual way to step down off that ledge. I call it “finding parallels,” and to understand the concept, you need to first understand what makes a wine taste like a wine, which come down to five basic points:

1. Grape: What type of grape(s) are used to make the wine

2. Place: Where the grapes were grown

3. Viticulture: How the grapes are grown and who grows it

4. Vinification: How the juice from said grapes is treated in the winery and who makes it

5. Vintage: The year the grapes were harvested.

Take a bottle that you love and use it as framework to try to match as many of these points as possible when searching for a less expensive one. Keep in mind these are listed from the most impactful to the least impactful.

Here are some examples.

Delaille, Sauvignon Blanc “Unique,” Val De Loire, France

There is a supply shortage of everything, but the Sancerre scarcity might hurt me the most. Enter “Unique” which is made from the same, crisp sauvignon blanc, vinified in stainless steel (much the same way as a classic Sancerre), which allows the wine to retain its bright citrus and grassy aromatics. The grapes aren’t grown within the geographical boundaries of the more established Sancerre, but a two-hour drive will put you at the Delaille family’s sustainable vineyards. A perfect balance between tropical and green flavors; drink cold and fresh. Around $20.

Schrader Cellars, Cabernet Sauvignon, “Double Diamond,” Oakville, Napa Valley, California

When is a $75 bottle of wine a value? When every other bottling at the same project (Schrader Cellars) sells for well above $400. Double Diamond is made by Thomas Rivers Brown using predominantly fruit from the famed To Kalon vineyard, which boasts some of the oldest cabernet sauvignon vines in the Napa Valley and a long line of wannabe suitors. As the prices of Napa cabernet are steadily increasing, and the star power of this vineyard, winemaker and place continue their meteoric rise, I don’t expect Double Diamond to be a secret for very long. If you enjoyed any cabernet from Napa, you will no doubt enjoy this densely generous wine, reminiscent of mocha and plum with restrained tannins. Around $75.

Chris Ramelb is an award-winning sommelier, and director of education and restaurant sales manager of Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits of Hawaii. Watch him on the “Wine & …” podcast, and follow him on Instagram (@masterisksomm).