Many people seek an easy formula for choosing better wines.

I’m often asked if I can suggest a book, or a class, or a particular wine magazine. But trying to master the vast array of wine producers from almost all corners of the earth is a long, though fascinating, slog. I’m still trudging along that endless route myself.

Fortunately, there is a simpler solution that does not require poring over tomes that daunt you with complexity, or pamphlets that mislead you by promising easy expertise.

All you have to do is remember three words: Wine is food.

This may sound absurd to people whose idea of wine appreciation is swilling a little red in a bar while their friends are downing cocktails or beer. It will make no sense to those for whom a glass of wine is merely the reward for arriving home after a hard day’s work, as others may enjoy a Scotch on the rocks or a martini.

But wine in the classic sense is not a cocktail replacement. It is an integral part of a meal, served at the table, with food. And for me, a simple way to understand wine, to elevate the quality of what you consume and the pleasure you take in it, is to treat wine as if it were another staple of the table, just as you would the produce, meat and bread that you shop for and eat.