Newsweek reviewed “The Wine Trials”, a new book by Robin Goldstein.  It will be available on Amazon in May 2008.  The author gathered 500 volunteer tasters, some experts and some ordinary tasters like me, and blind tasted 450 wines priced from $1.50 to $150. The result: “wines under $15 consistently outperformed their upscale cousins”.

That includes “Two-Buck Chuck”.

Newsweek also reviewed a Stanford and Caltech “mischievous study”  that was more fraud on the tasters than anything, but really proved a point.  Tasters think high-priced is better, even if it is exactly the same wine as the low priced bottle!

So why are we paying so much at the wineries?  We are paying for the experience, and we expect the wineries to provide a premium experience that makes us happy.  Architecture, landscaping, first-rate tasting staff, events, and other tasting room attributes cost a lot of money and we should be willing to pay for them.

We frequently select the less expensive wines during our tasting adventures and not only because of our budget but we like them better.  They are less refined, less smooth, less finished, and much more interesting.

Read the article and comment on it below: http://www.newsweek.com/id/129535

- jim