Price doesn't always determine quality
...but price awareness can shape perception
+0.40 a moderate positive correlation between price and rating when the label is visible (Vivino, 535 wines)
≈ 0 that correlation once the price is hidden, slightly negative for non-expert blind tasters (Goldstein, 6,000+ tastings)
0.6★ how much the average rating rises from the cheapest wines to the priciest
9% of drinkers are confident they could tell a $10 bottle from a $100 one
A note on the data: both measures reflect perception and preference rather than a standardized quality score. The blind study used non-expert tasters, who may weigh a wine by different criteria. Plenty of pricier wine is genuinely worth it. What the comparison shows is that price awareness can shape how a wine is perceived. The blind line is anchored to the cheapest wines and drawn to show the direction the study reported (flat to slightly negative).
Sources: Wine rating and price data obtained from Vivino, US market, July 2026. Blind-tasting findings from a US-based study by Goldstein et al., Journal of Wine Economics, 2008. Price-perception figure from YouGov, March 2024.