As a wine shop owner, I am constantly researching, reading and tasting wines and beers from around the world in order to make sure I have a great selection of wines and beers on the shelf for the wide and varied taste and price preferences of Oakton Wine Shop customers. Lately, I have seen many articles trying to define or mold what constitutes “good value” in the world of wine. It seems everyone in the trade – from the wine media to wine shop owners — have fallen prey to the notion that in order for a wine to be a “good value” it must be under $15. Well, the more I think about it, the more I disagree with the concept that “good value” is necessarily related to a single, specific price point. A more realistic way to define “good value” is to consider two or more wines of comparable price (no matter what that price point is for a specific individual) and after tasting the wines you are able to made statements like, “After tasting the wines, Wine A is good but I believe Wine B is a better value because it has more depth, character, lingering flavors and I find that to be more exciting!”
Recently, I was reading an article on Spanish wines and the author claimed people could find the best values were not in the well-known regions in Spain. Rather, good values in wine could be found if you were willing to look for lesser quality grape varietals that were enjoyable enough to satisfy the palate for the evening. Wait a minute why should anyone have to sacrifice overall quality in order to save a little money by settling for just a “satisfying” wine experience? We all work hard to earn a living and I believe people want and deserve to get the most out of their wine experience. I believe it is similar to what we all expect from a medical doctor. If you go to a doctor with a rash on your arm and the doctor says he can prescribe a $15 medicine which should satisfactorily relieve about 75% of the rash, do you think you will be pleased with that experience? I would think most of us would be willing to spend a little more on a prescription medicine which will eliminate the rash and thereby give us a complete and exciting cure.
Maybe it is not this simple. First, I think we need to define what value really means. According to Merriam-Webster “value” means, “A fair return or equivalent in goods, services, or money for something exchanged.” Ok, this definition is a good start, but when it comes to consuming wine or beer I think we want to feel like we are getting more than just a “fair return” for our dollar.
One of the factors which I believe plays a small, but important part, in what consumers believe wines are worth is the common perception that all wines cost the same to make and therefore when you pay more for a wine you are simply paying for the egos of the winemakers or a major marketing campaign. Well, the fact of the matter is not all wines cost the same to produce. There are many factors which determine the ultimate retail cost of a bottle of wine. It starts with the cost of the land, the vines, the building(s), labor, utilities, insurance, state and local taxes, and the list keeps going. Each of these costs vary from locality to locality. And after the wine is produced and bottled, it has to be shipped to every corner of the United States and possibly the world. Oh, and do not forget the federal and state regulations on alcoholic beverages, and the costs involved in complying with them. I have often wondered how anyone in the winery business actually makes any profit. Obviously, the cost of the land is a very large factor. In some areas an acre of land suitable to grow grapes could cost $100,000 but just down the road the land is priced at $150,000 because the soil, rock and drainage are markedly better. Thus, the cost of a ton of grapes from the $100,000/acre location is different than the $150,000/acre location. And as the vines get older they produce fewer grapes which results in even a greater difference in costs per ton per acre. The bottom line – all wines do not cost the same to produce.
Maybe we need to look at the decision process wine buyers use in order to establish which wines they will be offering on their shelves for sale. At the Oakton Wine Shop we spend most of our days tasting wines from around the world. We look for several standards when tasting wine and beer in order for us to make a decision on what to bring into the shop for our customers.
Here is what we are looking for when making the decision:
- · Clarity and color of the wine. Does it look old or fresh? Is it clear or cloudy?
- · Aromas – are they appealing or are they a turn off?
- · Flavors – what are we tasting in the wine, is it enjoyable? Is it balanced? Is the alcohol in check? Is it sour or bitter?
- · Finish – is the finish short or long?
- · Does the wine have a short life span or long?
- · If long how long?
- · Do we enjoy the wine?
- · Where is the wine from?
- · What is the varietal?
- · Compared to similarly priced wines do I enjoy it more or less?
- · If more, why?
I think this last question is what truly establishes “good value”. Every day when I taste wine I am constantly thinking about all of the wines I have tasted during the day or previously and comparing them to each other. In my mind some wines are better than other wines.
On a recent weekend, I had a series of meals each served with some very nice wines. When I came to work on the following Monday, I was reflecting back on the wines I tasted and was thinking about which ones I liked the best and why. All of the wines were roughly the same price but they were from different regions, of different varietals and from different vintages. Clearly, they were all “satisfying”, but in the end two wines stood out significantly from the rest. These two wines raised my satisfaction level much higher because they exhibited the depth and structure and flavors which lingered on the palate for a long period of time.
I guess at the end of the day “good value” is in the eye of the beholder not what someone else tells you it is. I would love to hear your feedback; contact me at bryan@oaktonwineshop.com
