The higher price of wine makes it taste better

[PrincessPerky]

I will ditto the hard stuff makes a difference, though which brand to buy is open to personal tastes.

Plus in some ways what you got in the habit of drinking makes a huge difference, once you train your taste buds on a certain poison it is hard to switch.

Whatever you do though, don't waste brain cells on poor tasting drinks!

When I was waitressing I once messed up a fellows order of Bacardi and coke as Bacardi in coke. He told me that I could pretty much always guarantee no one wanted to 'ruin' Bacardi by drowning it in coke. I kinda disagree, as it was the BEST rum and coke I had ever had. (I didn't want to waste that wonderful drink when I got him a replacement so...little perk of the job I guess)

edit to add - actually I think I am remembering the brand wrong, Bacardi is the brand I drink (drank)..not sure what he ordered? (sad to say it was years and years ago)

Wine on the other hand, I don't like fruity stuff, I do like dry, and red only goes with beef. Other than that, spend what you like. I prefer stores with wine tasting often, preferably the ones that let you taste the 10 and under bottles. Husband memorizes the 'good brands' and we stick with them. (though right now, no spending of that sort is occurring....)

[jerrycates]

Liquor prices in restaurants are insane. We hardly ever buy drinks when we go out to eat for that reason. Even a cheap wine like Beringer will be $6/glass. We can get it for under $5/bottle in our local stores. And $10 or $12 for a martini made with maybe $2 worth of alcohol. I'll take some tap water, thank you, then go home and have an after-dinner drink.

Not a bad idea you have there! Yeah, it is so true about the overrated wine prices. It hits the drinking population. However, it also give us good ideas like you just said. I would rather go home and enjoy a whole bottle than just try to make myself happy with a shot or two!

[couchrobt]

I will ditto the hard stuff makes a difference, though which brand to buy is open to personal tastes.

Plus in some ways what you got in the habit of drinking makes a huge difference, once you train your taste buds on a certain poison it is hard to switch.

Wine on the other hand, I don't like fruity stuff, I do like dry, and red only goes with beef. Other than that, spend what you like. I prefer stores with wine tasting often, preferably the ones that let you taste the 10 and under bottles. Husband memorizes the 'good brands' and we stick with them. (though right now, no spending of that sort is occurring....)

I have always liked the whiskey stuff Jack Daniels and Johnny Black. So, I would agree to that. It is hard to switch. Not that I do not like to taste new ones. I enjoy wine tasting myself when I have a chance, who would not? Open to new 'poison' but enjoys the old stuff. Maybe it's just me.

[MrPolarZero]

I have an interesting insight on this one. It's as if the study is saying that the more you are able to purchase higher cost items, the better you appreciate it.

[Frugal]

Ha ha, I found wine for $3.50 at Walmart that actually tasted better than the fancier, higher-priced stuff...and it has risen price in three weeks to $4.00. It's not always the brand that matters, or the price! lol

[NolaP]

Anyone try Bota Box wine? It tastes great, comes in eco-friendly packaging that is air tight so you never get a bad box, and costs less than $20 for the equivalent of 4 bottles nad so is great for parties. I tried it for the first time last year and have been hooked ever since.

[shanecurran]

My first lesson in this subject was on a birthday. My family took me out to a high-end restaurant and we were drinking this fantastic Pinot Grigio at the bar waiting for the table. About $7-8 a glass. I was determined to find it and when I finally did in a wine shop. It cost $7 for the bottle!

People like to look at this and say "I can't believe how much they charge for a glass/bottle of wine." But in reality this is not much when you compare it to liquor costs. In theory a restaurant will get 4 glasses of wine per bottle. Most times this is not achieved, but I will ignore that fact. So as per your example above the liquor cost is 7/28 or 25%. Now that same restaurant probably charges a pretty penny for liquor as well. I would guess a shot of Jack might cost you $6. A bottle of Jack probably costs less than $20 and a restaurant should get 18 shots out of a bottle. so $6 times 18 shots = $108. 20/108 gives you a liquor cost of 18%. So you are actually paying "more" for the Jack.

[disneysteve]

People like to look at this and say "I can't believe how much they charge for a glass/bottle of wine." But in reality this is not much when you compare it to liquor costs.

That's probably true, but doesn't really make it any better. Soda is the same way. $1.50 for a 16-oz. Coke when I can buy a 2-liter bottle for $1.

Of course, nobody ever seems to think about the huge markup on the food in the first place. An order of french fries might be $2. I can buy a 5-lb bag of potatoes for $2-$3. A pasta dinner might be $12. I can buy a pound of pasta for $0.89, a jar of sauce for a couple of dollars, and a loaf of Italian bread for $2 and feed a family of 4.

So all restaurant costs are greatly inflated. The difference is you don't need to drink alcohol when you go out so if you are looking to cut the cost of dining out, drinking water is a great easy way to reduce your spending.

[jerrycates]

I have always been a fan of the old stuff. Old for me was those bottles of wine/liquor that I see in my father's wine rack even when I was still a kid. From there, I had only known Johnny and Jack. He likes it, and I happen to like it as well. Wine Age? I don't think my subconscious mind would even want to know as long as the name fits.

[SteveBlissLaw]

Maybe it is a psycological thing, but I only enjouy wine that is really expensive. To me, expensive wine just tastes better IMHO

[steveaz67]

My friend and I used to do about 2 tastings a month. We went to a Bordeaux tasting of wines just release. They were VERY young and would be great in about.... 20 years. But, they were expensive. That is exactly what happened. They couldn't get over how good they were. They were awful at the time.

This is why I love blind tastings. I feel if I can find a great $20 bottle, I've hit the jackpot. When these snobs find out they loved the cheapest wine there, it's hilarious.

[SteveBlissLaw]

LOL. That made me laugh

[shanecurran]

There are plenty of people who consider themselves "experts" and probably couldn't even tell you what the predominant varietals were in a blind taste test. What really matters is how it tastes to you. My sister is a wine rep and she would never tell someone they were wrong for liking the taste of a particular wine. Find the wines that you like and don't let the price or some so called "expert" steer you otherwise.

[buildmybudget]

I just returned from Europe and I can easily say that paying double and triple for beer and wine definitely made it taste better! I mean, at least that is what I'm going to keep telling myself. We did sample some "cheap" Bordeaux's while we there. In Paris we stopped at a local market and picked up six bottles and drank them on the lawn of the Sacre Coeur. They weren't bad at all--and the experience was priceless.