Cheap wine tastes just as good as the expensive stuff

keepngoal

OKA: keepingoal
Staff member
Bookie
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Jun 20, 2006
39,426
24,745
113
some cheap wines taste better than some expensive wines. However, the really good stuff is never cheap and the cheap stuff can never be the really good stuff.

There are diamonds in the rough .... but many will say it is about personal taste or lack of pallet.

-keep.
 

bos

Legend
Staff member
Apr 10, 2006
30,535
6,307
113
Oh come on, who doesnt love a tall glass of Boone's Farm.
 

keepngoal

OKA: keepingoal
Staff member
Bookie
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Jun 20, 2006
39,426
24,745
113
Oh come on, who doesnt love a tall glass of Boone's Farm.

I don't think that is really wine. Not sure, never had it. But I thought it was a malt type beverage.

-keep.
 

pulse

Well-Known Member
Mar 24, 2006
9,403
2,641
113
They don't define cheap and expensive, they just say a range of $1.65 - $150 was tested. People define them differently. I would say moderately priced wines are a lot better than cheap wines. I can't say I've ever had what I would call an expensive wine so I don't have a point of reference for that. I suppose I could see an expensive wine not being overly better than a moderately priced one, but again I've never had an expensive bottle.
 

bos

Legend
Staff member
Apr 10, 2006
30,535
6,307
113
I don't think that is really wine. Not sure, never had it. But I thought it was a malt type beverage.

-keep.


I dont know what it was, but alot of girls in college loved it and it was cheap! =)
 

bos

Legend
Staff member
Apr 10, 2006
30,535
6,307
113
We buy Relax Reisling and its fantastic at 9 dollars a bottle. Toasted Head has a pretty good chardonney at 12.
 

Flag Guy

Well-Known Member
Mar 2, 2007
12,562
369
83
When I was in Spain my roommate and I would have a bottle of wine every night for dinner, usually just the 1 Euro or 2 Euro stuff... (one night I splurged on a bottle of 5 Euro stuff)

It was decent and all more or less the same for me
 

Skyh13

Well-Known Member
Mar 17, 2006
7,381
4,239
113
When I was in Spain my roommate and I would have a bottle of wine every night for dinner, usually just the 1 Euro or 2 Euro stuff... (one night I splurged on a bottle of 5 Euro stuff)

It was decent and all more or less the same for me

I'm in Italy right now, and it's similar to that.. although we can't quite get wine that cheap. No matter, though.. I'd like to find out how much a bottle of wine we had at a restaurant around here costs, though, cause that stuff was really, really good. Can't imagine it's more than even €20 a bottle, which for great wine is cheap I think.
 

keepngoal

OKA: keepingoal
Staff member
Bookie
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Jun 20, 2006
39,426
24,745
113
We buy Relax Reisling and its fantastic at 9 dollars a bottle. Toasted Head has a pretty good chardonney at 12.

there are great finds out there in the mid priced area.... great finds.

There is a wine from Cali that is only $3 .. something like "3buckcab" or something... very .. VERY good wine. The owner believes in inexpensive wines and wines for everyone not those that can afford it.

-keep.
 

josier

Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Nov 9, 2007
251
21
18
Johnston
These types of studies are always skewed by people's preferences for wine. If I hate Chardonnay, it doesn't matter if it's a $2 bottle or a $200 bottle, I'm not going to like it.

We tried a similar experiment with friends once. We bought 3 bottles of Pinot Noir, an $8 bottle, a $20 bottle and a $50 bottle and did a blind tasting. It was easy to identify the $8 bottle, but the $20 and $50 bottles weren't as easy to differentiate.
 

bos

Legend
Staff member
Apr 10, 2006
30,535
6,307
113
there are great finds out there in the mid priced area.... great finds.

There is a wine from Cali that is only $3 .. something like "3buckcab" or something... very .. VERY good wine. The owner believes in inexpensive wines and wines for everyone not those that can afford it.

-keep.

Ive heard of that one. Ill have to see if I can find it. I agree with his line of thinking. Some people just get enjoyment from the art of wine making and having people experience it. Others just want the cash.
 

josier

Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Nov 9, 2007
251
21
18
Johnston
there are great finds out there in the mid priced area.... great finds.

There is a wine from Cali that is only $3 .. something like "3buckcab" or something... very .. VERY good wine. The owner believes in inexpensive wines and wines for everyone not those that can afford it.

-keep.

That's the wine's they sell at Trader Joes and they can be very good. They're made from leftover and unused grapes from wineries all over California, so you could potentially be getting really good wine.
 

isucyfan

Speechless
Apr 21, 2006
21,312
5,465
113
52
Saint Paul, MN
That's the wine's they sell at Trader Joes and they can be very good. They're made from leftover and unused grapes from wineries all over California, so you could potentially be getting really good wine.

"Three Buck Chuck" is about all I buy anymore. I'm not enough of a connossieur to be able to discern that it's not as good as a $100 bottle of wine, and that's fine with me!

I have to deliver cases of the stuff to my parents in Iowa. They would love a Trader Joe's there.
 

keepngoal

OKA: keepingoal
Staff member
Bookie
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Jun 20, 2006
39,426
24,745
113
IMO, there is a big step up in quality at the $8 level and then another at the $24 level. After that the steps aren't as noticeable, but you get a range of flavors you don't see below $18.

of course there are exceptions to the rule.

-keep.
 

pulse

Well-Known Member
Mar 24, 2006
9,403
2,641
113
These types of studies are always skewed by people's preferences for wine. If I hate Chardonnay, it doesn't matter if it's a $2 bottle or a $200 bottle, I'm not going to like it.

We tried a similar experiment with friends once. We bought 3 bottles of Pinot Noir, an $8 bottle, a $20 bottle and a $50 bottle and did a blind tasting. It was easy to identify the $8 bottle, but the $20 and $50 bottles weren't as easy to differentiate.

That's how I kind of view cheap, moderate, and expensive. The $12-$25 bottles are a lot better than the $5-$8 bottles. I'm assuming the $50-$150 bottles aren't much better than the $12-$25 ones.
 

mred

Well-Known Member
Oct 19, 2006
9,637
6,713
113
SE WI
bball.notnothing.net
I bought a bottle of Two Buck Chuck at Trader Joe's a few months back but haven't gotten around to opening it. I don't know if I've ever had wine more expensive than maybe $20 per bottle, so I'm not one to make a judgment on quality.
 

bos

Legend
Staff member
Apr 10, 2006
30,535
6,307
113
cigarsandbooze.jpg


This summed up a small portion of college for me. It started off as a joke and then turned into "we dont have squat for cash tonight, lets go cheap."


Thank God we eventually got better jobs.