We’ve all been there at one point or another.
You indulged yourself by buying an expensive bottle of Italian wine. After leaving it to age for a few more months, you finally give into the temptation and open it up. You pour that first glass, take a nice sip, and sit back…
But then your mind starts asking questions.
Is this wine really as good as you’d hoped it would be? Was it worth the money that you spent on it? Could you have spent less and gotten a wine that was just as good?
Did this bottle of wine give you true value for money?
With wine tastes being so subjective, it’s perhaps impossible to answer such questions about a specific vintage of wine. However, this idea of finding the best value for money is one that many will want to engage in, especially as the world looks set to head into some bleak financial times. You want to make sure you’re getting the best possible Italian wines for the money that you spend.
But how do you do that?
In this article, we share some tips that will help you to find a wine that offers true value for money.
Tip #1 – Use an App
The biggest challenge you might have when buying a wine from a supermarket or other physical store is that you simply don’t know how much of a mark-up that store has applied. For all you know, you’re paying double, or even triple, what the wine is worth!
Now, you could run a quick check of a website like Xtrawine to see what the wine’s selling for with other retailers. But if you don’t want to go through that hassle, or we don’t have the particular wine in stock, you may need another solution.
Enter mobile apps.
There are a variety of mobile apps out there that can give you an instant assessment of the wine that you’re thinking about buying. Take “wotwine” as an example. This app allows you to scan a wine’s barcode to get information about where it came from, what it has to offer, and how much it’s worth. The app even provides reviews for the wine, so you can see if it’s a decent wine.
There are many other apps out there that offer similar functionality. The key here is that you have something in the palm of your hand that allows you to do a little bit of research before you buy.
Tip #2 – Buy in Bulk
This is a tactic that savvy shoppers have used for decades and it’s one that you may be able to apply to your Italian wines. When you buy in bulk, many suppliers will offer a discount because you’re taking so much stock off their hands.
This may not be an option with some retailers, which charge by the bottle regardless of how many you buy. However, if you can source a good wholesale, and have need for large quantities of a particular wine, you may be able to grab them bottles for less than they sell individually. If you’re of a mind to, you might even contact the wine’s producer to ask about their prices and whether they’re willing to sell in bulk to an individual.
Tip #3 – Look for Certification
We’ve spoken about the DOC and DOCG certifications for Italian wine plenty of times before, so we won’t go into too much detail here. All you really need to know is that any one that carries such a certification has been verified to have come from a specific region and has been made in the way outline by the certifying body. In the case of DOCG wines, the wine has also undergone human testing to ensure that it meets the quality standards required.
Simply put, the presence of such a certification on a wine tells you that it offers quality. Of course, this isn’t to say that IGT wines can’t offer a similar level of quality. It’s just that the certification shows you that some level of verification has been applied to the wine that you’re thinking about buying.
Tip #4 – Going Super Cheap May Not Be the Best Option
At Xtrawine, we don’t subscribe to the idea that only the most expensive wines can offer quality. That isn’t the case at all. While a higher price tag comes with prestige and a certain level of expectation, there are plenty of less expensive wines that are a true joy to experience.
However, there is such a thing as “too cheap”.
Extremely inexpensive wines (which in this case would be wines that fall below the £5/€5 mark) are wines that usually don’t have too much care put into their creation. In many cases, the producers trying to sell as much wine as possible rather than caring about the quality of the wine.
The point here is that your search for value shouldn’t lead you to the cheapest possible Italian wines. After all, you still want to achieve some level of quality for the money that you spend.
Tip #5 – Look Out for Discounts
Retailers will regularly offer discounts, especially during the latter end of a year, when they’re preparing for the latest vintages to arrive from their suppliers. As such, you should always keep your eye out for discounted wines.
Take Xtrawine as an example.
We regularly apply discounts to our wines for many reasons. In some cases, we are looking to clear up stock to make room for other vintages. In other cases, we may believe that a wine deserves more attention than it’s getting and we use discounts to encourage people to try it.
Either way, a discount means you’re getting more wine for less money!
The Final Word
Value is what we’re all searching for, especially when money’s a little tighter than before.
With these tips, you should be able to find an Italian wine that sates your first without breaking the bank.
I’m a passionate about good wine and good cooking.
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