Wine. Do you know it?

Dogoid · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:10

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/16/cheap-wine/

This article states just what i have always thought regarding the differences between cheap and expensive wines. Myself, have always been happy to buy the cheapo bottles, 2.50 a bottle etc, generally sub fiver price range.

The article confirms to me a definite snob mentality that's associated with buying wines , the mentality that is if it costs more it tastes better.

I think this carries through to whisky too, i have no problem with some of in-expensive brands at all, its all about taste range , not range in 'quality'.

"There was no significant difference in the rating across the four wines; the cheap wine did just as well as the expensive ones. Even more remarkable, for a given drinker, there was more variation in the rankings they gave to the two samples drawn from the same bottle than there was between any other two samples. Not only did they like the cheap wine as much as the expensive one, they were not even internally consistent in their assessments".

krooton · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:12

Very cheap wine is ALWAYS nasty, though cheap wine of £3+ a bottle can still be as good at a £10 one.

£4-£6 is the sweet spot for the stuff I like.

blix · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:15

My dad is into his wine and he occasionally buys pretty expensive bottles, and tbh some are horrid, and some taste no different to cheaper wines. I also notice no consistency in his tastes lol, and most of the stuff he raves about I don't like, some of the stuff I like he says is undrinkable. :confused:

Then again I don't think I've ever had a bottle of wine I would like to drink by itself, although I do think it can be essential with food.

Freefaller · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:17

How can they say that cheap wines are just as good as expensive ones?! :/ Don't get me wrong there are a lot of very good "cheap" wines... but there are a lot of superior wines which are a little bit dearer too.

Dark_Angel · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:18

I'm not a drinker - but was considering getting a bottle of red wine. Reasons? I've heard that a small glass a week is good for your heart... Is that a bunch of rubbish?

krooton · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:19

Dark_Angel said:
I'm not a drinker - but was considering getting a bottle of red wine. Reasons? I've heard that a small glass a week is good for your heart... Is that a bunch of rubbish?

It's true, and I recommend a £5-£6 Chilean Merlot

Glaucus · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:20

expensive wines don't always taste better. but you do have a better chance of getting a good tasting wine.

and it's very much down to your own taste on what you like.

kylew · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:20

You'll find this in most areas of interest. The main one I see is "nVidia graphics cards cost more than ATi, so they're better".

There will always be people who attribute quality to cost, it's stupid, but those people are suckers, so more fool them to be honest. If they want to throw their money away, then good for them.

I don't drink though, so give me a nice cold orange lucozade, or red grape juice (NOT FROM CONCENTRATE) and I'm happy.

Dark_Angel · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:20

Is it red wine that's good for you, or any old stuff?

D.P. · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:21

No, anyone with half a tongue (and nose) can tell the difference between a £2 wine and a £100 wine.

And anyone with any palate can easily tell the cheapest wine from £10-20 at least 90-95% of the time.
This doesn't stop a particular £3 win tasting as good as £10.
and maybe you don't think the difference between a £20 win and a £50 wine is worth it (or that matter a £10 to £20). Maybe you think it is stupid to spend £100 on a wine, however much you liked it.

kylew · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:21

Dark_Angel said:
I'm not a drinker - but was considering getting a bottle of red wine. Reasons? I've heard that a small glass a week is good for your heart... Is that a bunch of rubbish?

Just get it over with and buy a crate of red grape juice!

It's supposedly the anti-oxidants, not the alcohol itself that brings the benefits.

Freefaller · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:21

AcidHell2 said:
expensive wines don't always taste better. but you do have a better chance of getting a good tasting wine.

and it's very much down to your own taste on what you like.

Oh absolutely - there are some appalling wines atrociously and pretentiously priced.

krooton · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:21

Dark_Angel said:
Is it red wine that's good for you, or any old stuff?

Red, white/rose lack the antioxidants that red has.

Dark_Angel · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:23

kylew said:
Just get it over with and buy a crate of red grape juice!

It's supposedly the anti-oxidants, not the alcohol itself that brings the benefits.

Well I'm eatting red grapes at the moment so.

krooton said:
Red, white/rose lack the antioxidants that red has.

Ah okay.

NickK · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:23

The wine taste I like from the region I like normally drops in at about £30-40/bottle on average. I have tasted a £220/bottle from the same region and I could taste the difference as if you were viewing the world in 2D and 3D. However I would probably only have known that by drinking a lot of my normal stuff.
However my rack is quite bare at the moment ;(

InvaderGIR · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:32

Freefaller said:
How can they say that cheap wines are just as good as expensive ones?! :/ Don't get me wrong there are a lot of very good "cheap" wines... but there are a lot of superior wines which are a little bit dearer too.

Spot on.

About the cheapest I'll go when buying is £5 a bottle...which is usually when something is on offer.

I've tried true cheap wine (sub £4 a bottle) and for the most part it has been horrid. I drink a fair amount of it so buying cheap would be great, but I honestly find the more expensive stuff to be better.

The only 'cheap' wine I really like is stuff that is made by my family...recently had a couple of bottles of 1999 red which were lovely...it's 'cheap' because I don't pay for it...family makes it, minimal cost.

One thing I do not like though is that a lot of restaurants charge random prices for their wines. I spent £20 on a bottle that was £10 in shops...my ex's parents bought the same wine previously in a restaurant and spent £40 on a bottle.

MonkeyNews · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:35

If you are going to go for red you cant go wrong with French, stay clear of Australian reds, a fair share of Oz reds ive had have gone very bitty at the bottom of the bottle leaving the last glass to look and taste terrible.

InvaderGIR · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:41

I don't generalise between countries, I've had brilliant wines from all countries.

Only time I have had crap in the bottom of the bottle is when I've had some expensive French reds or family made reds...as with the one mentioned above...but the bottle right up to the lumps was goooood.

vitet · 30 Oct 2009 at 17:53

D.P. said:
No, anyone with half a tongue (and nose) can tell the difference between a £2 wine and a £100 wine.

And anyone with any palate can easily tell the cheapest wine from £10-20 at least 90-95% of the time.
This doesn't stop a particular £3 win tasting as good as £10.
and maybe you don't think the difference between a £20 win and a £50 wine is worth it (or that matter a £10 to £20). Maybe you think it is stupid to spend £100 on a wine, however much you liked it.

Absolutely agree with this post. No bottle of wine under a fiver is going to be good. Once you've taken into account the cost of the bottle, label, shipping and tax it probably won't leave that much left for the wine itself. Mass produced carp with added sugars for taste no doubt. You might as well drink red bull! :confused:

The more expensive the a bottle of wine comes down to many factors - the age of the vines, grape varieties/blends, vintage etc... For the most part, you get what you pay for. If you think a wine tastes awful and it's pricey, then it's probably either corked or your palate is screwed.

Freefaller · 30 Oct 2009 at 18:00

InvaderGIR said:
I don't generalise between countries, I've had brilliant wines from all countries.

Only time I have had crap in the bottom of the bottle is when I've had some expensive French reds or family made reds...as with the one mentioned above...but the bottle right up to the lumps was goooood.

Indeed. I do like Chilean reds it must be said - but I still favour Froggy wines in general - but there are a lot of very good wines out there that aren't French.