The question of how much you should spend on a bottle of wine comes up frequently in our business, and the answer is, as you’d expect: that depends!
Follow your nose
For the most part, the cost depends on the circumstances under which you are consuming the wine.
The difference between an inexpensive wine and more full-bodied wine is in the nose (or at least, should be). We aren’t talking about your nose. We are talking about the nose of the wine, its bouquet.
You see, your mouth can only sense four flavours: sweet, salt, sour and bitter. Everything else comes from your nose. There is a passage in the back of your throat that allows vapours to pass up to the sinuses. That’s where most of the flavour comes from. Unlike the mouth, your nose can sense up to 10,000 different flavours. That is the main reason you should be aerating your wine before use. It opens up the wine by letting air mix in and create the bouquet that will produce all the subtle flavours.
What you will notice with an inexpensive wine vs. an expensive (full-bodied) wine
Now, if you’re having a glass of wine with your Wednesday night spaghetti, you may not be taking the time to appreciate the finish of the wine, and that’s where the difference lies. An inexpensive bottle of wine doesn’t have much of a bouquet and, therefore, not much finish. Once you swallow it, you’re done.
However, a glass of full-bodied wine with a big nose, will show you all its hidden gems after you swallow it. So, if you’re not going to be taking the time to appreciate those differences before the next bite, then a more expensive wine may not make that much difference. I believe that it probably will still make the whole meal experience more enjoyable, but you may not notice it.
On the other hand, if you’re enjoying a glass of wine by itself or with appetizers, that’s where the quality difference will stand out. Especially if you try pairing the wine with a complimentary flavoured appetizer.
The benefit of making a batch of full-bodied wine
For those that want to make their wine, I’d recommend making at least one batch of full-bodied wine because there will always be occasions and times where you can appreciate the difference. And if it hangs around for a while before being used, all the better. Like most of us, wine improves with age.
Want to see the difference yourself? Please make an appointment to visit us and get started! We have lots of different wine kits to choose from.