The oenophiles (wine snobs) of the world will have you believe that wine is complicated and takes a lifetime to study, learn and appreciate. Unless you carve out a limestone cellar in your basement to store your collection of Phillipe de Rothschild vintages, they'll say you're nothing but an amateur -- a wine drinker, but certainly not a wine lover.

Well, you know what, they're right (sorry!). But that doesn't mean they can intimidate you with their copies of Decanter magazine and their gobble-de-gook wine speak, filling casual conversations with oohs and aahs over a wine's legs or its bouquet. The best way to combat such rhetoric is with knowledge, so herein lie some of the most profound wine myths, longstanding misconceptions and insight into some of what those winos are talking about.

Myth #1
You can't drink red wine with fish

Repeat after us: "I can drink whatever I like with whatever I like." Say it enough times and you'll soon believe it. Wine, like most palatable things, is subjective. No one has the taste buds you have and the fact remains, if you don't like a certain wine, say Chardonnay, the filet of salmon it's served with won't convert you. If you wish to drink red go for a "smaller" wine like Pinot Noir or Beaujolais. They're lighter and better suited to fish than say a cabernet sauvignon or shiraz.

Myth #2
Really good wine is really old wine

In fact, most wine you buy at your local liquor store is meant to be drunk within a few months of purchase and holding on to it for many years will do little to change it. According to American food and wine guru Alan Richman, the only wines that really benefit from aging are red Bordeaux, red Burgundy, white Burgundy, Barolo, vintage port and vintage Champagne -- drink everything else within six months of purchase.

Myth #3
Screw top = cheap plonk

While it does remove some of the romance out of opening a bottle of wine, a screw top actually seals a bottle better than anything else, including those new synthetic corks. In fact, many wineries (even French!) are converting to screw tops as corking mishaps (nasty flavour imparted by faulty or tainted cork) ruin about five per cent, or thousands of bottles, of a winery's production.

Myth #4
Red wine pairs perfectly with chocolate

Some red wines go well with chocolate but the rule doesn't guarantee great results every time. The thing to remember is that your wine should always be sweeter than the food it's being drunk with. Chocolate that contains a lot or even a little sugar can make the wine it's being consumed with seem overly bitter. Opt for dark chocolate with a high cocoa content (at least 60 per cent) and choose a wine with lots of sweet fruit characteristics, such as Merlot.

Myth #5
You can tell a lot from a cork

Truth is you really can't. The next time a waiter hands you a cork to sniff after he's popped your wine, smile demurely and set it on the table. You can tell a lot more from the 1/2-ounce pour he just put in front of you. Smell it then taste it and decide whether it's off or not. Then glance around the room and smirk at the suckers with the corks pressed against their noses.

Myth #6
Wine needs to breathe

Yes, wine does need air to help it "open up" or show its true self, however simply popping the cork and setting the bottle on the table does little. Decant, or pour the wine into another vessel -- this is the best way to introduce air to wine. Decanters usually have very large bases and the wine benefits from a large surface area being in direct contact with oxygen. That's also the reason people swirl their wine in the glass before tasting -- to open it up.