Ever been into a bottle store and had no idea whether a wine is good value or not? How are you meant to know if a wine that is $20 is good? Should you really be splurging on a wine, or would getting a bottle worth less still be a great buy. Getting wine at the bottle store, or even online, can be really hard. Without trying a wine before you buy it, how are you meant to know if you’re going to enjoy it? In this article, we dive into some tips on how to tell if a wine is good value so you can get more bang for your buck!
This article is not about helping you necessarily choose a wine that you’ll love the flavour of. That is down to personal preference, and unfortunately, it can be hard to know what is in the bottle until you try it for yourself. But these tips should help you understand why wines cost what they do so you understand the value in the wine price. Along with some tips for getting the best bang for your buck! Choosing a bottle of wine that you know you will enjoy comes down to knowing what you like based on trying a bunch of wines, and knowing what you’re pairing the wine with too. Remember you can always ask for recommendations!
What factors into a wine price?
Knowing how to tell if a wine is good value starts with understanding what goes into the price of wine. Why are some wines cheaper than others? The main factors at play are the winemaking and production, the time aged and terroir (where the wine is grown).
Winemaking and production
There is a lot of costs that go into winemaking from producing the grapes themselves to creating the wine, packaging it and distributing it. Winemaking is a very complicated process that is quite labour intensive. The more expensive the labour, and the harder the production, the higher the cost.
Also factoring in is the number of bottles produced. Each harvest has fixed costs that can’t be reduced and aren’t related to the quantity of the bottles produced. But if you produce less wine, the fixed costs have a major impact on the price of a single bottle. That’s why wineries that produce large volumes of wine tend to have cheaper bottles.
Winemaking techniques also directly impact prices as well as how much wine you yield, impacting price. Using artisan winemaking techniques may mean fewer bottles are produced driving up the price. But it is also about the tools used in winemaking.
Oak is a great example of a winemaking technique that impacts cost. Oak barrels are great for adding flavour to wine, but they are quite expensive, and also only yield a certain amount of wine. Using oak, particularly new oak, increases the cost of producing wine. This is why a number of bulk wine producers use stainless steel to ferment their wine and may add things such as oak chips to get the flavour of oak in the wine. It’s far cheaper and leads to more volume of wine to sell.
So in a nutshell, winemaking and production can be expensive, especially if you’re trying to produce quality wine. This impacts the cost, but the main factor is the number of bottles produced. The fewer bottles, the more impact those costs of production have on your bottle of wine.
The time aged
Age mainly impacts the cost of red wines, or age-worthy white wines. This is because age can change the flavour of wine and if done well really enhance the drinking experience. You can age bottles of wine yourself, but some wines are sold with a few years under their belt so you can enjoy them straight away. In some of the old world wine regions, this is even determined by their rules and regulations so wines cannot be sold until they have been aged a certain number of years. For wines that benefit from age, generally the older the wine, the higher the price.
Terroir
Terroir, or where the grapes were grown, makes a direct impact on what can be charged for a bottle of wine. We see this in old-world wine especially. A great example is a price you pay for Champagne versus sparkling wine from Australia. But you can also see this in the new world too. For example, a wine labelled ‘Australian wine’ without a region won’t command as high a price as something from a specific region such as the Yarra Valley.
But the terroir can also impact the yield of grapes and therefore the price of the wine. Producing great grapes means focusing on yield to give the wine more intensity. So wines grown in the best locations tend to produce a lower yield, leading to a higher price per volume of grapes due to reduced quantity.
What is grown in the vineyard also matters. Some grapes, such as Pinot Noir, are harder to grow. This pushes their cost up. But it is also about what the region is known for too. For example, a Hunter Valley Semillon may command a higher price than a Chardonnay.
Are expensive wines worth the money?
So now that you know what impacts the price of wine, are expensive wines worth the money?
Expensive wines are usually expensive for two reasons:
- It costs more to make – what goes into the production of wine, as we spoke about above can vary the cost quite a bit. This is why a high-yielding grape from a large vineyard fermented in stainless steel will be cheaper than a wine from a low-yielding vineyard fermented in new oak.
- They are expensive because they can be due to ‘perceived value’. This is where how much a consumer is willing to pay affects the price of a good or service. Wine can be a luxury good and because of this, production costs aren’t always the whole story. It is why some wines can carry a price tag over $1000.
Price can feel like a minefield, but when you think about it, it isn’t a litmus test for quality or taste. What wine companies are selling is value, which is perceived quality plus experience, divided by the price.
This is why value is subjective. You might get enjoyment from expensive wine, or you might be just as happy with a $20 bottle. So it isn’t really about whether an expensive wine is worth the money, because part of that cost is always going to be the perceived value. Instead, it should be a question of whether you think it is worth the money. This is why it can be hard to tell if a wine is good value.
Quick tips for finding good value in your wine
So now that we’ve covered what goes into cost, how can you tell if a wine is good value, and find good value wine? Here are a couple of tips to hopefully help you find a wine that you love that doesn’t cost you more than you’re willing to part with.
Tips on wineries
- Seek out smaller producers – Mass-produced wine is designed to appeal to the widest possible audience at the lowest cost of production. There may be nothing wrong with purchasing this, I mean you won’t pay an arm and a leg for these wines. But if you want something where you are more likely to get more bang for your buck, opt for smaller, lower yield producers. These wineries are producing wines designed to be remembered and bought again, and although they may carry a higher price tag, the quality is there to justify it.
- Buy from the winery direct – Rather than buying from the bottle shop, you’re more likely to get value for your money by purchasing directly from the wineries. They won’t be paying for distribution keeping costs down, and they also often have wine clubs offering further discounts.
Tips on price
- Don’t go for the second cheapest bottle on the wine list – the second cheapest bottle on the wine list usually has the highest markup.
- Shoot for a wine in the middle of the price bracket – due to sales taxes on alcohol, the real price of the bottle is going to be less than what you pay. But no winery is going to put all that effort in to sell at a loss. Buying the cheapest bottle of wine is not going to give you quality, but buying the most expensive may not be any better than buying the middle of the range. Go like goldilocks and find a wine that is just right. Sure the more expensive one may be more age-worthy, but if you’re looking for a wine you can enjoy now you may as well pay a little less.
Tips on regions
- Look out for small regions on old world wines – There are a number of rules and regulations around regions for old world wines. Typically wines labelled with a larger region such as ‘France’ will be their version of mass-produced wines. Because they are imported they may still carry a higher price tag. To get wines with greater quality control, look for smaller regions, sub-regions or villages on the labels. Note that these will be more expensive, but higher quality.
- Know your regions – become familiar with what each country and region is known for, and focus your purchases on those styles or grape varietals. This is a sure-fire way to get a quality wine.
- But always look out for lesser-known regions – you can get great value by looking at underrated regions. By going slightly off the beaten bath you may find some killer bottles at really affordable prices as they won’t have as much perceived value. Try looking at another region other than Barossa for your Shiraz and you might find a new favourite at an affordable price!
In summary: How to tell if a wine is good value
There are so many tricks to use to tell if a wine is good value. But just remember that when it comes down to it, value is just a perception. There is a lot of work that goes into the bottles of wine we enjoy, and that work comes at a cost. But if you perceive a wine to be good value, then you will be willing to pay the price. I can give you plenty of tips for finding great wine, but it all comes down to what you’re willing to spend. If you want to spend $20, great. If you want to spend $1000, that’s up to you. Either way, if you invite me over for a glass I’d be happy! At the end of the day, you should drink what you enjoy, regardless of the price!