When Your Favorite Wines Become Too Expensive

When Your Favorite Wines Become Too Expensive

Bryce Sanders, President

Perceptive Business Solutions Inc.

Wine fans love good wine.  There is an ocean of mass-produced wine on the market.  Wine fans prefer drinking the better stuff.  The problem develops when your favorites suddenly become out of reach.  What can you do to still get the experience and sensation, but at a lower price point.

Wine is sometimes considered a collectible.  Some people buy it with the hope the value will go up and they can sell it at a profit.  This is complex, because alcohol sales are regulated.  Collectors would need to sell through auction houses licensed to be selling alcohol.  Some collectors don’t even take delivery of the wine, leaving it in bonded warehouses. 

In my opinion, wine is meant to be enjoyed with food.  It traces it’s roots back to ancient times when the water was not safe to drink, and Cola Cola had not been invented yet.  In my personal opinion, I cannot understand why a bottle of wine would sell for more than the same weight in silver, a precious metal.  If a bottle holds about 24 ounces and silver is $26.53/oz. )7/23/24), why should a bottle of wine sell for more than $637?   As an FYI, according to wine-searcher.com, the average price of Chateau Lafite Rothschild, admittedly a fine Bordeaux wine, is $759, $640 and $817 in the 2022, 2021 and 2020 vintages respectively.

Back in the real world, the wine you enjoyed at $35/bottle might have crept up to $50 or $70 over the years.  What now?  As we look at alternatives, “snob appeal” becomes a factor.  You might be able to get a similar flavor profile, but the brand or name won’t impress your friends.  Perhaps you pour the wine without showing the bottle.

1.      Champagne.  For a true wine fan, champagne only comes from France, from the region bearing the same name.  The big names owned by luxury goods firms might now be in the range of $50-$65/bottle on their entry level, non-vintage bottlings.  Your wine store might have some champagnes as low as about $40/bottle.  What can you do?

Instead:  Costco sells wine, including bottles under it’s own label, Kirkland.  They carry a true French champagne under the Kirkland label at about $20/bottle.  There is no “snob appeal” to the Kirkland label, but it is true champagne and should taste fine.

2.      Sancerre.  This is the Sauvignon Blanc from the town of the same name in the Loire Valley in France.  It has been called the official white wine of Paris.  It has crept up in price.  What might have once been priced in the teens might now be in the mid $30’s ot higher.

Instead:  The commune of Quincy is close to Sancerre.  Same grape type, similar taste profile.  It should be cheaper.

3.      White Burgundy.  There was a time you could buy Puligny Montrachet, Chassagne Montrachet and Meursault for reasonable prices, certainly under $100/bottle.  These white Burgundies are made from the Chardonnay grape.  As they became expense, St. Aubin, a neighboring commune in Burgundy was considered an alternative.  Then it became expensive.

Instead:  You want a wine that has the characteristics of the finer white Burgundies that are now out of reach.  Kumeu River Chardonnay is produced in New Zealand.  It’s quality has often been favorably compared to those finer white Burgundies now at very high price points.  The winery’s bottlings run from about $23 upwards to $70.

4.      Red Bordeaux with distinct flavors.  In my opinion, you are safer choosing wines with a higher percentage of Merlot.  St. Emilion is famous for them.  The famous names can be expensive.

Instead:  Chateau Fombrauge is a classed growth from St. Emilion.  It runs about $30-$35/bottle.  It has lots of flavor and should impress friends at a dinner party.

5.      Pinot Grigio.  It is said to be the second most popular white wine in the US.  That should come as no surprise.  Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio probably has the greatest name recognition in the US.  Prices might average in the mid $20’s, but you might find it cheaper.

Instead:  Returning to Costco, their Kirkland brand has a Pinot Grigio they sell for $4.99/bottle.  For summertime drinking and entertaining friends, it’s a good deal.

6.      Rose wine.  It has a popularity that has endured.  The three major brands, all from France are Whispering Angel, Minuty and Miraval.  They are priced at $26, $22 and $23.  You can see they compete around the same price point.

Instead:  Trader Joe’s carries a house brand of Rose wine, La Ferme Julien priced at about $5.99.  For summertime drinking, it should be a good alternative, especially for large events.

It is not difficult to find good wine at reasonable price points.  Talking with your local wine merchant is a good place to start.

Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc.  He provides HNW client acquisition training for the financial services industry.  His book, “Captivating the Wealthy Investor” is available on Amazon.