Pride and prejudice in the evaluation of wine?

Abstract

PurposeThe region where a wine is produced is a factor that influences consumers' preferences and price perceptions. For most consumers, a wine from an established place like France would be preferred over a wine from less established place, like Texas. However, a consumer's identity with their home area (not well known for wine) may override such an effect. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to determine whether a wine's geographic origin influences wine preference and price perceptions and, if so, whether identity with a place and/or wine expertise moderate this relationship.Design/methodology/approachA total of 257 students from a Texas university sample and rate two identical wines – yet one is labeled as from France and the other as from Texas. Their identification with Texas and their wine expertise are also measured. Paired sample t‐tests and repeated measures MANOCA are used to analyze the data.FindingsThe paper finds that a wine's country of origin has a strong effect on consumers' preferences and price perceptions. Specifically, consumers prefer the French wine over Texas wine and are willing to pay more for the French wine. Consumers' identification with Texas does not significantly mitigate the effects of country of origin; those who score low on Texas identity as well as those who score high had similar ratings for the wines. Similarly, no moderating effects for wine expertise are found.Originality/valueThis research shows the strong effect of county of origin even when participants actually sample the (identical) wines. It offers value by showing that the identity with a region provides little help in overcoming this effect and that wine producers and regions should consider strategies other than appealing to a consumer's identity with the region.

How aspects of a wine’s place affect consumers’ authenticity perceptions and purchase intentions

“…While previous research has demonstrated that wine from an Old World wine country is perceived more favorably than wine from a New World wine country (Guidry et al, 2009), research has not explored why that could be the case. This research suggests that one reason is the wine's perceived authenticity; that is, perceived authenticity mediates the effect of country of origin on one's WTP for the wine.…”

“…In one study, participants tasted both a supposed French (Old World) wine and a supposed Texas (New World) wine, although the two wines were actually identical (Guidry et al, 2009). The results showed that the supposed French wine was perceived to be of higher quality than the supposed Texas wine.…”

“…While country-of-origin research has suggested that wines from countries well-known for producing wine are perceived as more highly valued than countries with relatively less wine-producing expertise (Guidry et al, 2009), little research has explored why this is the case. That is, previous research has not explored the underlying mechanism that drives this higher perceived value.…”

Private labels versus national brands: The effects of branding on sensory perceptions and purchase intentions

“…However, this time we tested reactions to champagne. Unlike other studies, in which all participants tasted the same product in all experimental conditions (Guidry et al, 2009), we used two different brands available on the market. In the national brand condition, we used a brand owned by one of the world's leading wine and spirits groups.…”

Der Herkunftslandeffekt: Eine kritische Würdigung des State of the Art

“…Maheswaran und Chen 2006). So verbinden einige Käufer mit dem Erwerb von Produkten bestimmter Herkunft Stolz, Prestige oder Sympathie (Batra et al 2000;Guidry et al 2009;Zhongqi et al 2006). Die einem Land entgegengebrachte Antipathie und die dadurch ausgelöste Ablehnung der dort hergestellten Produkte erforschten erstmals Klein et al (1998) (Baker und Ballington 2002, S. 160).…”