The WINE thread

[Franko]

Things I don't understand in business #2.307.

How is it possible for someone in California to grow, pick, thresh and ferment 500 grapes, get a bottle, put the liquid in it, print and plonk a label on it, put in a crate, send the crate to a port, get it imported to the UK, pay duty, get it distributed to a wholesaler, get it distributed to a seller, and still make money when selling it at £3.99?

Mass production wobbler.

Two things to think about;

1. Try making a car for 10 grand
2. Try making a cigarette lighter for a euro.

[NAG1]

Things I don't understand in business #2.307.

How is it possible for someone in California to grow, pick, thresh and ferment 500 grapes, get a bottle, put the liquid in it, print and plonk a label on it, put in a crate, send the crate to a port, get it imported to the UK, pay duty, get it distributed to a wholesaler, get it distributed to a seller, and still make money when selling it at £3.99?

Mass production wobbler.

Two things to think about;

1. Try making a car for 10 grand
2. Try making a cigarette lighter for a euro.

Check Economies of Scale when you are there 

[gallsman]

Hashtag or no hashtag, Laoislad is right. Don't listen to pseudo wine snobs.
This can also be applied to the beer and whiskey threads.

I don't think anyone on here is being a food or drink snob. I think the most anyone has done is express their like/dislike for particular drinks.

Just because people might be knowledgeable on a subject doesn't make them a snob. I know f**k all about wine but if someone was an experienced wine drinker, never mind a professional sommelier, and they recommended something to go with a meal my reaction would be "this guy knows a hell of a lot more than I do" rather than "this lad's a snob talking out his arse".

[Franko]

Things I don't understand in business #2.307.

How is it possible for someone in California to grow, pick, thresh and ferment 500 grapes, get a bottle, put the liquid in it, print and plonk a label on it, put in a crate, send the crate to a port, get it imported to the UK, pay duty, get it distributed to a wholesaler, get it distributed to a seller, and still make money when selling it at £3.99?

Mass production wobbler.

Two things to think about;

1. Try making a car for 10 grand
2. Try making a cigarette lighter for a euro.

Check Economies of Scale when you are there 

Economy of scale is what you derive from mass production... 

[laoislad]

Hashtag or no hashtag, Laoislad is right. Don't listen to pseudo wine snobs.
This can also be applied to the beer and whiskey threads.

I don't think anyone on here is being a food or drink snob. I think the most anyone has done is express their like/dislike for particular drinks.

Just because people might be knowledgeable on a subject doesn't make them a snob. I know f**k all about wine but if someone was an experienced wine drinker, never mind a professional sommelier, and they recommended something to go with a meal my reaction would be "this guy knows a hell of a lot more than I do" rather than "this lad's a snob talking out his arse".

Tony Baloney is still a knob though.

[thewobbler]

Things I don't understand in business #2.307.

How is it possible for someone in California to grow, pick, thresh and ferment 500 grapes, get a bottle, put the liquid in it, print and plonk a label on it, put in a crate, send the crate to a port, get it imported to the UK, pay duty, get it distributed to a wholesaler, get it distributed to a seller, and still make money when selling it at £3.99?

Mass production wobbler.

Two things to think about;

1. Try making a car for 10 grand
2. Try making a cigarette lighter for a euro.

Check Economies of Scale when you are there 

Economy of scale is what you derive from mass production... 

There's obviously profit in it, but it still strikes me as mad that a product which requires so many environments (vineyard, processing plant, 2 airports and the transport cost between, a bottling plant/distribution centre, and a retailer), with each involving some (small) manual effort in the chain, can make money at a £3.99 price point.

Especially when I get charged £2.50 for a punnet of grapes in Tesco!

[seafoid]

Things I don't understand in business #2.307.

How is it possible for someone in California to grow, pick, thresh and ferment 500 grapes, get a bottle, put the liquid in it, print and plonk a label on it, put in a crate, send the crate to a port, get it imported to the UK, pay duty, get it distributed to a wholesaler, get it distributed to a seller, and still make money when selling it at £3.99?

Mass production wobbler.

Two things to think about;

1. Try making a car for 10 grand
2. Try making a cigarette lighter for a euro.

Check Economies of Scale when you are there 

Economy of scale is what you derive from mass production... 

There's obviously profit in it, but it still strikes me as mad that a product which requires so many environments (vineyard, processing plant, 2 airports and the transport cost between, a bottling plant/distribution centre, and a retailer), with each involving some (small) manual effort in the chain, can make money at a £3.99 price point.

Especially when I get charged £2.50 for a punnet of grapes in Tesco!

Tesco grapes have to be refrigerated to point of sale, wine grapes are processed often on site. Tesco make bigger margins on fresh fruit .

The cost of the wine in a 3.99 bottle might only be 50p.  But it's money for poorer grapes and it might be subsidised by the prices for the better grapes.

there's great money in growing grapes for wine. 15 hectares can produce 60,000 bottles a year.

[lurganblue]

Might try and give this wine craic a go (on the back of reading people's drinking trends on here recently).  Now as a good lurgan man i of course had my years of drinking the finest Buckfast and even on the odd occasion got a low numbered bottle but i never ventured into more sophisticated stuff.

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

[Taylor]

Might try and give this wine craic a go (on the back of reading people's drinking trends on here recently).  Now as a good lurgan man i of course had my years of drinking the finest Buckfast and even on the odd occasion got a low numbered bottle but i never ventured into more sophisticated stuff.

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

Chilean Merlot is a decent place to start........coming from someone who has just started and knows no differently

[Milltown Row2]

Might try and give this wine craic a go (on the back of reading people's drinking trends on here recently).  Now as a good lurgan man i of course had my years of drinking the finest Buckfast and even on the odd occasion got a low numbered bottle but i never ventured into more sophisticated stuff.

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

Chilean Merlot is a decent place to start........coming from someone who has just started and knows no differently

Try and stick to the Spanish, Italian , or French reds, reduced hangovers (providing you don't drink two bottles) New world wine is cheaper but as Ive said very often on here Tesco and other shops run a 25% discount for 6 or more, which will on average give you good bottles of wines for a fiver!

I'll give you a few types later

[trailer]

Might try and give this wine craic a go (on the back of reading people's drinking trends on here recently).  Now as a good lurgan man i of course had my years of drinking the finest Buckfast and even on the odd occasion got a low numbered bottle but i never ventured into more sophisticated stuff.

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

Chilean Merlot is a decent place to start........coming from someone who has just started and knows no differently

Try and stick to the Spanish, Italian , or French reds, reduced hangovers (providing you don't drink two bottles) New world wine is cheaper but as Ive said very often on here Tesco and other shops run a 25% discount for 6 or more, which will on average give you good bottles of wines for a fiver!

I'll give you a few types later

With meat an Australian Shiraz is good. I only like red with food (meat mostly). Malbec, Pinot noir (Delta NZ is good).
With white it is hard to beat a NZ Marlborough.

Key thing with wine is, if YOU like the taste of it then that's all that matters. A £5 bottle can be every bit as good as a £50 bottle. It's to your taste.

[Insane Bolt]

As the late great Paddy McAvinchey said......even a sausage tastes better with a glass of red😎
If you like the taste drink your fill😜

[Rois]

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

French Beaujolais is a very light wine and a good one to start with.

[Milltown Row2]

Might try and give this wine craic a go (on the back of reading people's drinking trends on here recently).  Now as a good lurgan man i of course had my years of drinking the finest Buckfast and even on the odd occasion got a low numbered bottle but i never ventured into more sophisticated stuff.

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

Chilean Merlot is a decent place to start........coming from someone who has just started and knows no differently

Try and stick to the Spanish, Italian , or French reds, reduced hangovers (providing you don't drink two bottles) New world wine is cheaper but as Ive said very often on here Tesco and other shops run a 25% discount for 6 or more, which will on average give you good bottles of wines for a fiver!

I'll give you a few types later

With meat an Australian Shiraz is good. I only like red with food (meat mostly). Malbec, Pinot noir (Delta NZ is good).
With white it is hard to beat a NZ Marlborough.

Key thing with wine is, if YOU like the taste of it then that's all that matters. A £5 bottle can be every bit as good as a £50 bottle. It's to your taste.

All true Taylor in relation to prices, I'm into the Rioja Tempranillo, for the French I'm buying the Bordeaux, plenty of them about at decent prices.. the Pinot Noir is a wine that isn't for the first timer but has good Tanin. As for the Italian wines the Tuscan's are the way to go, Chianti decent..

As for the new world wines I tend to avoid they are generally stronger and give more of a hangover (purely my view) the old world stuff is produced differently and I much prefer that style..

As for the Whites, I only drink it when the red has ran out, or if we are out for dinner and we order a bottle it's a white! A Pinot or a Villa Sol!

I'm thirsty after that

[Champion The Wonder Horse]

Might try and give this wine craic a go (on the back of reading people's drinking trends on here recently).  Now as a good lurgan man i of course had my years of drinking the finest Buckfast and even on the odd occasion got a low numbered bottle but i never ventured into more sophisticated stuff.

Any recommendations for a newcomer? I think i would like to stick to the red stuff, unless of course persuaded otherwise.

Chilean Merlot is a decent place to start........coming from someone who has just started and knows no differently

Try and stick to the Spanish, Italian , or French reds, reduced hangovers (providing you don't drink two bottles) New world wine is cheaper but as Ive said very often on here Tesco and other shops run a 25% discount for 6 or more, which will on average give you good bottles of wines for a fiver!

I'll give you a few types later

With meat an Australian Shiraz is good. I only like red with food (meat mostly). Malbec, Pinot noir (Delta NZ is good).
With white it is hard to beat a NZ Marlborough.

Key thing with wine is, if YOU like the taste of it then that's all that matters. A £5 bottle can be every bit as good as a £50 bottle. It's to your taste.

Tesco have one on clearance at the minute for £3.75 a bottle.