Many wineries have very small production, and the economics of these wineries are such that they require selling fairly high priced wines. The target price varies by region and cost structure, but they generally have to average above $15, often over $20 and sometimes much more than that.

Also, bear in mind that while daily consumption of $26 wine might be an activity of 1 percenters or wine geeks, millions of regular wine drinkers buy these wines for occasional gourmet meals, holidays, etc. while keeping their typical wine well under $20.

No matter what, wine is subjective, but if a writer whose palate I trust / find congruent with mine recommends something out of my usual price range — or, at least, can tell me what foods pair with it — then I have something to go by when deciding which bottle to choose on the few occasions I can splurge.

Being disappointed in a $6 wine is tolerable and forgettable. Missing the mark on a $40 bottle can ruin an evening and make a person shy away from splurging in the future.

Eh, perhaps not.

That line between wine appreciation and wine snobbery is whether the object of attention is intrinsically about the wine and how it makes one feel vs. leveraging of knowledge or experience for the purposes of social status (how depressing!).

I still see too much wine snobbery around, *especially* in the media and I don’t mean WSJ.

Maybe to really put a dent in the wine snobbery that you see, call people out for it using the words. “Wine Snobbery!” “Wine d**chiness!” “Status Clinger!” “Star **cker” Those types have a similar insufferable quality as film critics.

dr v – i don’t think journalists getting free wine is unethical. i do think it makes wine retailers much more reliable critics than journalists. i love reading your blog, or 1 wine dude, or wine specatator, because it is interesting. but if i want someone to recommend a bottle for me, i’ll ask someone who is tasting, buying, and selling wine for a living.

and, on a different topic, i work at a winery, so i understand why some wines must be expensive. there is nothing wrong with splurging for a special occasion. but there are many great wines to be had under $20.