Life Is Too Short to Drink Cheap Wine
By Matt Sheker
Whenever I hear the title of this article spoken by one of my customers, I have to ask the question “What bottle did it for you?” I can then anticipate a detailed conversation about the wine—maybe the meal that accompanied it, or the specific occasion that changed a wine lover into a wine enthusiast. Still, many people will argue that a ten-dollar bottle of wine is just as good as a fifty-dollar bottle. I would bet, however, that these people have never experienced a bottle of Silver Oak Alexander Valley or Napa cabernet, a Cakebread chardonnay, a Shafer merlot, or a Silverado SOLO cabernet.
First, we must distinguish the cost categories of wine. A cheap wine is classified as a bottle sold for seven dollars or less. These are wines made in mass production for grocery stores and other large-quantity outlet stores. Usually the shelf life of these wines is brief and the balance inconsistent. Once in a while, you can find discounted wines in this price range, but they are usually past their prime and ready to be used for cooking. An inexpensive wine is categorized as ten to fifteen dollars per bottle, while expensive wines are priced fifteen dollars and over. According to the AC Nielsen reports, expensive wine buying has increased 41 percent since January 2004.
So, what has changed over the last five years to make people spend more money on wine and demand higher quality? Growth in consumption has come from the millennial generation—the roughly 70 million Americans between 21 and 28—who are fast becoming the wine connoisseurs of tomorrow. The health-conscious baby boomers have a significant disposable income and have acquired discriminating palates; therefore, purchasing the pricier wines has become part of their lifestyle.
“The November studies from the Harvard Medical School and the National Institute on Aging garnered significant positive attention for red wine,” says Danny Brager, vice president of client service at Nielsen Beverage Alcohol. “Our latest figures show that the extensive coverage, including the February 2006 cover of Fortune magazine, which proclaimed ‘Drink Wine and Live Longer,’ may be impacting consumer choice within the wine category. As consumers search for products that promise better health and guard against aging, it would be reasonable to assume that recent favorable press has tipped some decisions toward red wine.”
Is there really a difference between a seven-dollar bottle of wine and one that costs upward of fifteen dollars? The real decision is always in the eyes of the beholder; however, premium grapes that make higher-end wines that come from specific award-winning wine regions are obviously more expensive. If you have an opportunity, purchase a fifty-nine-dollar bottle of Silver Oak Alexander Valley cabernet sauvignon—just once. Take notes about the wine—like the fragrance, the clarity, the taste, and the finish—and forget about the price for a second. Then purchase a seven-dollar bottle of wine and take similar notes. After comparing the two, I believe you will be able to argue that life is too short to drink cheap wine.