In the world of wine, they say quality is everything. In California, an oversupply of everyday wines is backing up at the same time that we've seen the largest premium wine boom in history. It's a tale of two markets. More than ever, quality dictates whether a wine sells and it determines the price point.
Growers tend to view quality in terms of vine balance.
Real quality has to do with the fruit, whereas perceived quality has to do with the reputation of the vineyard, grower, winery and appellation of origin, Beckstoffer says. People need to be aware of that and thus very protective of their appellations. You need to relate the story, the pedigree of your vineyard in terms of the perceived quality that these things elicit. In terms of real' quality, there are no objective standards as to what is good quality and what is poor quality. Years ago, quality was determined at the highest level by the owners of a series of Chateaux, dictating what the world's wine taste should be like.