Anonymous wrote:I'm with you, OP. I've tasted $50 Italian reds that were delicious -- but I would sooner lop off a finger than spend $50 for a bottle of wine. So until I'm invited to another anniversary party where the host is opening the good stuff, I'll stick with my boxed stuff. Works for me.

$50? Ha.

Try several hundred dollars.

I see that many of you have no idea what truly prodigious wine is, or costs.

OP, you just tasted some wine that you didn't like, which is totally fine! There is no single category of "expensive wines" -- you just had some wine you legitimately didn't like.

My DH is a HUGE wine nerd with a giant collection, and there are definitely wines that are not to my taste at all -- for example, I really hate wines that have "peppery" or "vegetal" notes, if not balanced with other elements. That said, there is a huge and noticeable quality difference between $10 wines and $50 wines and up. But I didn't know that until I had been with DH and he opened many bottles of wine for me.

Another huge tip: the wines that you didn't like were likely French or French-style wines that are not intended to be sipped alone. They are supposed to be enjoyed with food -- it makes the wine taste totally different. I don't mean you have to obsess about "wine pairing" food rules, but just that the wine is meant to be drunk with something rich -- steak, cheese, olives, etc. Next time you have an expensive bottle of wine, open it alone with some nice cheese or a beef stew! You might like it more.

If you still don't like French wine, cool, cool! There are plenty of really great American and especially Australian wines that are made to be better sipping alone -- the so-called "fruit bombs." Try walking into the wine store and saying "I want a California fruit bomb in the $25 - $50 range" and see what happens.

Another pretentious sounding thing that is true: a lot of expensive wines do have to breath or be decanted to have all their balanced flavors come out. And then after a while they can "close up" and not taste as good. So next time you open a fancy bottle, taste a little when you open it, wait 10-15 minutes, and taste again.

Finally, the problem I have with $10 wines is that they are manufactured with tons of artificial techniques and additives. So you're not really tasting "wine" but rather a "wine beverage" designed to suit American tastes -- sweet, super oaky, etc. Some of these can be ok (I actually don't mind Apothic Red!) but some are just disgusting to me now and undrinkable. As a PP said, if you go up to $20, you can find much nicer wines. That said, it's actually quite hard to find that good $20 wine!

Anonymous wrote:Based on this thread, I have revised my statement to now say there is no reason to ever spend more than $20 on a bottle. After that price, my opinion has been validated.

All the dollars spent after $20 are a stupidity/snobbishness/insecurity tax on try-hard social climbers.

To say that all wines at $10 are gross is pure ignorance and snobbishness as well. A large portion of the cost of wine is tax depending on where you live and where the wine comes from.

Based on this thread, I have revised my statement to now say there is no reason to ever spend more than $20 on a bottle. After that price, my opinion has been validated.

All the dollars spent after $20 are a stupidity/snobbishness/insecurity tax on try-hard social climbers.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you have an unsophisticated palate. Keep trying or give up. It's up to you.

OP is a hick and proud of it. Yee haw!

Yee haw! - OP

What are you, twelve?

I wouldn’t use the word “gross”. But I agree with the OP. I have had $200 bottles of wine and $20 a bottles of wine. The tastes are different. All wines taste different. But both were good. I have a close friend who works in the wine industry. Even he says it’s a con.

Anonymous wrote:I once had dinner with a person who collected wine. He brought a bottle to the restaurant. The sommelier opened it and he shared a glass with him. It was easily the most delicious wine I ever had. Sublime is the word that comes to mind. I’m normally a $10 bottle drinker, but this was another level of drink altogether. It was probably nearly 20 years ago, and I still remember how amazing it was.

Some wines may not be worth their price tag, but there are some out there that’s are!

This

When this topic comes up in conversation, I just say try wine at tastings and drink what you like at a price you are willing to pay. Like others have said, price is not a good indicator & I agree that going up to $20 will lead to better results.

Another thing, if you find a wine you like, go to the winery website and see if you can order direct. I’m in Virginia and can receive wine shipments but it varies by state. I joined several wine clubs and get a few shipments a year that aren’t overly expensive.

This is nonsense. I am totally spoiled by expensive wine - my brother is a wine buyer for a chain of specialty wine stores, and through him I have got to drink wines costing hundreds of dollars. Would I personally pay hundreds of dollars for a bottle of wine? No. Is there a difference in taste and quality between those and a $10 bottle. 100% yes. I would not say that the difference in taste and quality is necessarily in proportion to the difference in price - a $200 bottle is not necessarily 20 times better than the $10 bottle. But there are sweet spots - lesser known regions, specific vineyards, etc - where you can find the value points and find wines which cost maybe $40 a bottle but taste as good as some of the $200 bottles.
Anyway - I never ever drink cheap wine now, it tastes awful to me. If I'm in a restaurant a quick text or photo of the wine list to my brother is usually helpful (he's more reliable than the Vivino app - which I recommend if you don't have access to my bro!) and he's able to select something for me based on what he knows I like and would want to spend.

I like to stay under $20. Good Pinot Noir and Zinfandel tend to be a little more expensive, but you can still find some decent ones in that price range.

Anonymous wrote:We opened our "expensive" bottle of wine and it just isn't any good. This is pretty much always the case every time I drink some very special or expensive old red wine.

When you people obsess over fancy wines and pretend they are so good, who are you trying to impress? Are you worried the upper class police are going to ask to see your papers, out you as a fraud, and banish you to a trailer park?

There is literally no reason to pay more than $10 for a bottle of wine

pretty ridiculous statement. Are you just trolling?

I'm hardly an oenophile but I can taste a clear difference between the $10 bottle and the $20 bottle, to the point that I rarely buy or drink wine unless it's in the $20 category. Yes, I'm that fussy, and yes, I drink little wine as a result. Maybe a bottle or two a month.

But having had wines in the $30-50 bracket the difference in quality between the $20 and the $40 bottle is far less of a gap than the one between the $10 and $20 bottles. So I never buy wines more expensive than $25ish.

I have never had the genuinely expensive wines (the kinds that cost at least a hundred a bottle) so I can't comment on those. Wouldn't mind one one day!

OP, words like gross hardly help you. Overrated is perhaps a valid word to use as the cost-quality benefit ratio likely decreases the more expensive the wine is, but I seriously doubt it gets "gross" relative to the cheap wines, which can truly be nasty. If you had a bad bottle, and wine can go bad, it's probably because you didn't store it properly.

Anonymous wrote:OP, you have an unsophisticated palate. Keep trying or give up. It's up to you.

OP is a hick and proud of it. Yee haw!

I'm with you, OP. I've tasted $50 Italian reds that were delicious -- but I would sooner lop off a finger than spend $50 for a bottle of wine. So until I'm invited to another anniversary party where the host is opening the good stuff, I'll stick with my boxed stuff. Works for me.