Finding Bargains in Red Wines

Great Northwest Wine
December 10, 2017

A question often asked is why red wine is so much more expensive than white wine. The reasons are many:

Red wine grapes cost more. Last year, a ton of red wine grapes in Washington cost $1,157 a ton, compared with $883 a ton for white wine grapes.
Red wines are often aged in oak barrels for a year or more before being released. A French oak barrel costs in excess of $1,000. For some producers, those barrels are used for one year only. White wines are made in used oak or stainless steel tanks.
Red wines are seen by consumers as having more cachet, and therefore higher prices.
If it’s a vineyard designated wine, the cost of those grapes run a bit higher, resulting in higher-priced bottle.
Higher-end producers often buy grapes that are custom-farmed, meaning more labor costs per ton, resulting in higher costs. The payoff is presumably higher quality wine.
It takes longer to make good red. Time in barrel, bottle aging and time to mature means it’s not ready to sell as quickly as white wine. Time, space, labor costs are all higher, resulting in a higher price tag.

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