The difference between $15 and $200 Wine

I toured several Sonoma and Napa Valley prestigious "cult" wineries and, in addition to tasting some fantastic wine, learned a "secret." I am not not a wine expert and have wondered exactly what makes a great tasting wine worth $200 a bottle. Now I know the secret.

I asked Daniel Ha of Vineyard 29 winery. His wines have won awards, they're highly rated by the wine gurus of the world, and his wines routinely sell for $85 to $200 a bottle. Daniel's a brilliant guy, so when I asked him what makes a wine worth $200 he smiled, leaned in and shared the secret in a soft voice.

A great-tasting wine that's rated, say 92, may cost $15. Then again, a great-tasting wine rated 92 may cost $200. The $15 wine will be made from the grapes of numerous vineyards in the region. The vintner will mix the grapes and determine the perfect recipe and voila, the wine is born.

The great-tasting $200 wine will be made exclusively of grapes from one vineyard, which the winemaker has complete control over. Every year, those grapes will be the exclusive grapes in that wine.

This is the true essence of quality control. The grapes are controlled in the $200 wine. In the $15 wine, the control is much lower and the quality/taste will vary year to year.

If you love the $15 wine this year, you may not love next year's vintage because it will be an entirely different mix of grapes. If you love the $200 wine this year, chances are, you'll love it every year because the very same grape vines are producing grapes with the flavor you love.

How can we apply this to our businesses?


Barry LaBov
LaBov and Beyond Marketing Communications
www.labov.com