This will sound strange, I know, but I often wonder: What do economists drink?
To become one, you don’t need to know squat about grapes, of course, but you do need to know something about beans. As in money – prices and value.
My favourite economic concept is the law of diminishing returns or, as bean counters often call it, the law of diminishing marginal returns. It governs pretty much everything, including wine.
A quick summary for those who slept through high school: The more labour or money you put toward something, the more you tend to get in return.
Eventually, though, you hit a point where every added bit of effort (or expense) gets you a smaller incremental gain. I sometimes think of cycling as an analogy. Pedalling hard builds up speed quickly.
But once you reach a good clip, the air friction becomes so strong that you have to risk a coronary to add just a click or two to your speed.
Curiously, economists typically speak of diminishing returns in connection with producers, not consumers. But the law applies to shoppers, too – nowhere more than in the wine market. The more you spend on a bottle, the better – generally speaking – the quality. Past a certain price, however, each additional dollar gets you less added bliss.
When I’m playing armchair economist, I like to ponder the tipping point (if you’ll excuse the beverage pun). My best guess is $30. For me, a well-chosen $30 wine often delivers three times the thrill of a typical $10 quaffer. But $60 rarely brings me twice the joy of a great $30 bottle.
By all means, spend $60 or even $300 if you’ve got the dough and want the best of the best. Just know that you’re not drinking two or 10 times better than the rest of us salaried schmoes. You’re paying a huge premium for a marginal gain.
If you quickly scan the scores and corresponding prices below (most items are available in Ontario except where indicated), I think you’ll notice a pattern.
Landing a 90-point wine is pretty easy when you’ve got $15 to $30 to spend and shop carefully. Climbing the ladder to 92 or 95, though, could cost you hundreds more.
Krug Grande Cuvée Brut Champagne (France)
SCORE: 95 PRICE: $269.95
For a brief moment, this venerable Champagne smelled to me like a really good cream-of-mushroom soup dusted with herbs. It was love at first sniff. On the palate, expect a rich texture and nuances of buttered pastry, roasted nuts, lively lemon and a very long, balanced finish. It’s my kind of Champagne (at, regrettably, not my kind of price). It sells for $255 in British Columbia and $273.75 in Quebec.
Château Pontet-Canet 2008 (France)
SCORE: 95 PRICE: $129
What a splendid effort from the 2008 vintage of this fifth-growth red Bordeaux. Good fruit purity and concentration are complemented by traces of mineral and earth. It starts smooth, then astringent tannins tighten their grip in the second act. Cellar it for two decades or more if you can or decant it and serve it with rare beef or lamb chops. The B.C. price is $188.
Ladies Who Shoot Their Lunch Shiraz 2008 (Australia)
SCORE: 91 PRICE: $34.95
The name is grabby and so is the colourful label graphic of a woman toting a rifle, hunting dog by her side. Yes, it’s from Australia. The winemaker took good aim with this one, too: rich plum, blueberry, chocolate and vanilla balanced with fine tannins and solid acidity. Try it with lamb or game.
Concha y Toro Winemaker’s Lot 115 Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 (Chile)
SCORE: 91 PRICE: $17.95
