What are the signs of quality of a wine?

The wine market is complex and plentiful, and it can be very difficult to detect, without first tasting them, the bottles that match our selection criteria.
Moreover, in this market where the value of wine can vary from simple to hundredfold, it can be very complicated to detect great wines, because the price does not always reflect the quality of the product.
So let's take a look at the signs of wine quality.

The appellation

The appellation of a wine provides information on several factors

• The geographical origin (which gives indications on the climate and the terroir)
• The grape varieties used (each appellation is more or less restrictive on this point)
• the cultivation of the vines (for example, the density of planting which influences the yields and the "concentration" of the wine)
• the winemaking methods (whether or not the wine is aged in wooden barrels, etc.)

Also, if an appellation is not necessarily a guarantee of quality, it is a very good indicator of style!

The label

If the aesthetics of the label and the packaging of a bottle can be determining factors when buying wine, neither of them are indicators of the quality of the contents of the bottles.
On the other hand, the aesthetic aspect of the bottles can make it easy to recognize previously tasted wines!

The price

It cannot be said often enough that the price is not necessarily linked to the quality of the wine. In fact, the process of setting the price of a wine depends on a multitude of factors:

• The unit production cost of the bottles
• The total volume produced
• The demand for the product
• The psychological value of the product, i.e. how much buyers are willing to spend on it

On the other hand, price ranges are good indicators of the average quality of a wine:

• Below €10, a wine can be very good, but will be limited in terms of complexity and length. At these prices, favour simple and fruity wines (Loire, Beaujolais, Languedoc-Roussillon )
• Between 10€ and 25€, it is possible to find some real nuggets, at a very good value. Don't hesitate to ask your wine merchant for advice!

Above 25€, you can find very good wines, as well as some that are greatly overpriced...
At this price, buying wine becomes a considered act. Ask a professional for advice to avoid disappointment.