Hi I’m constantinbaum master of wine and It’s time to answer one of the Weinberg’s biggest questions is it Possible to taste the difference between A wine sold by a Discounter like Aldi And a wine sold by a specialist retailer I’m going to taste seven wines blind That are either from Aldi or from a Specialist but they are all in the same Price category between 5 and 10 US Dollars will I know which one is which Or will I crash and burn let’s find out [Music] There’s a fierce competition going on Between Discounters that focus on price And Specialists that focus on service Due to their size price points wine Knowledge and reputation wine quality Has often been lacking amongst Discounters it is difficult to get very Good wine at a very large scale so there Often wasn’t enough of the good stuff Available in order to fill the shelves Of thousands of shops for a long time it Was a taboo for highly regarded wine Brands to sell your wines and ALDI you Wines would have been delisted from wine Shops and restaurants and your Reputation would have been severely Damaged this has changed in the last Years as more and more well-known Wineries are working with Discounters Discounters are now selling more Expensive wines and wineries that were
Formerly only available in high-end wine Shops now create second labels for the Discount segment on top of that Discounters have invested more into Quality control they’ve brought in wine Expertise from masses of wine and so Many consultants so I’m guessing that This tasting is not going to be that Easy because the lines are slightly Blurred nevertheless I asked Leon to Pick some wines at Aldi one of the Biggest Discounters in the world and at A specialist retailer I know that they Are all in the 5 to 10 euro or US dollar Category in Germany but that’s all I Know so Let the blind tasting begin so let’s Start off with wine number one A white one this is going to be Challenging because you can’t really Smell or taste whether wine was on a Shelf in a discount store or at a Specialist retailer but you can taste Whether wine was made in Mass volumes or Whether it was made for the mass Audience which is more well what the Discounters are carrying as opposed to Wines that are more for a niche segment Of the market But obviously there are also specialist Retailers that sell ones that are mass Compatible so This is going to be a challenge so for Me this smells like a very simple very
Fruit driven but well made white wine That is pretty Mass compatible in terms Of apples a little bit of pears a little Artificial even on the palette it’s Juicy there’s some freshness in acidity There but it’s not it’s nothing Nothing extraordinary there’s not great Length there I would rate it 80 points So it’s in the in the good category in My world I would say this smells and Tastes like a krabogunda maybe or it Could also be something like a lugana Which is tribiano so a different grape Variety entirely but a very common very Popular Weinstein Germany right now so I’m going to say this is a lugana and I’m going to say this is from Ali even Though it could just as well be from a Specialist so it’s a bit of a toss-up But I’m going for Aldi in this case and Well yeah it’s in the 5 to 10 euro Category and I think at that price point It’s actually a pretty good wine so if You like this style then go and seek it Out at Aldi get yourself a carton or Whatever you you buy at Hardy so let’s Have a look It is a lugana and it’s from Aldi Because it says a at the back so You know why I didn’t score this one Higher is the fact that it is quite Aggressive on the Finish Yeah it doesn’t have great balance but It’s it’s
So on to Wine number two Which is again a white wine why number Two is less aromatic less expressive so It’s a little bit Well you have flavors of Apple you also Have flavors of hay and nuts so it’s a Little bit yeah there’s a little bit of A mix of different flavors coming Through it’s not just fruit on the pad It’s actually Surprisingly rich and juicy and Concentrating so It’s not super powerful but I thought Just smelling it I thought it would be a Slightly lighter a more acidic wine Style so this clearly isn’t an aromatic Grape variety it could be Chardonnay it Could be Chana it could be Pinot Blanc I Think I’m going to rule out Shadow name I don’t think it has the aromatic Profile of Chana so it doesn’t have the Waxiness and wooliness That I usually get from General so for Me this is more Pinot blow it could also Be Pinot Gris So I’m going to say this is a vice Pagunda from Baden but the big question Is actually where was it sold is it from The discount or a specialist retailer And this is tough well I think that this Is less compatible so it’s not super Fruity or very easy to understand it’s a Little bit more complex a little bit More has a little bit more depth it’s
Also really well made I mean the texture Is quite velvety so it’s not doesn’t Have the harshness of the previous wine I would therefore rate this 84 points I’m just going to say that this is from The Specialist A little bit more quality Little maybe a little low scale scale Wine making but yeah I’m I’m kind of in The dark here it’s this is a difficult Tasting man There was a time when I just had to Identify grape varieties or Origins and Now I have to say where the wine was Sold but anyways let’s have a look Yes Oh man I’m on fire so this is from a Specialist this is Dr Hinkle from Heimer Quotes So the richness in the texture is Actually the sweetness which kind of Yeah ask me by a little bit Um it’s 11 alcohol so it’s actually Fairly low in alcohol and it’s not from Bad and it’s from Ryan Hassan which is a Little bit further up north That’s it’s yeah not all that far away And it’s yeah it’s a good wine even Though I gotta be honest I don’t drink a Lot of Dry bicycle window but This is this is pretty good so let’s Pour wine number three Which is again a white one okay I gotta
Be honest I don’t really like this one It feels a little bit disjointed it’s Definitely an aromatic rape variety this Could be Riesling this could be Sauvignon blanc on the nose you get this Peachy Aroma there’s a little bit of Apple there as well but it’s quite One-dimensional on the palette it’s Quite juicy there’s a little bit of Sugar there’s some acidity there But it just doesn’t feel very well Integrated for me this is pretty average And average in the 100 point scale is in The 70s so I would rate this 73 points and Yeah what is it I don’t know it’s maybe A Riesling but like not a good one and I Hope this is not sold by a specialist Retailer but Yeah there’s some bad specialist Retailers around as well Um so yeah I’m going to say this is Discount quality probably at the lower End of the category range so so at at The five euro mark Let’s have a look the bottle shape kind Of helps a little bit here but it is Riesling it is From Aldi and it retails for 6 Euros or Six US Dollars it’s pretty much the same Nowadays and it’s from the naha region It says seasonal grape Harvest I don’t Know what that means because every Grape Harvest is seasonal isn’t it yeah
I’m not a fan I’m sorry next up wine Number four Oh Jose is that good or bad I I don’t Know but it’s Jose so this was the Expense of strawberries but it also has Yogurt and slightly unfinished flavors So it feels very young and I’m not Really sure whether it’s ever going to Be harmonious so on the palette it feels A little bit grippy acidic rough so it’s Kind of yeah challenging Jose style it Feels like more mass-produced wine so That kind of points me more towards Audi Than specialist retail and Star Wars I would say this feels like a Hoversial Jose from the provence and the Color is fairly light you have the Salmon you there Um and also the topicity of the grape Varieties feels more like like the Provence than than most other places in The world so I’m going to rate this 75 Points and I just don’t really feel this Rose I don’t think I would be drinking This somewhere on the Terrace especially In Autumn and my guess is this is an Aldi product but let’s have a look Spot on so this is actually at the very Low end of the scale 5 Euros or 4.99 and It’s Aldi Koto dexon performance it got An 88 Point rating by one of the wine Magazines I don’t really see that but Anyways
Not so exciting so we’re on to one Number five and maybe this is another Aussie but it looks very much like a red One so this is a really solid wine it Smells of blackberries black olives it Smells a little bit of spice you have Some rough and wild flavors coming Through as well on the pad is Rich and Concentrated there’s good tenants there There’s also good acidity so this is a a Wine that if it is from the five to ten Euro category is pretty good value the Flavor is pretty much directly point me To one region which is the Rhone I think This is a Surah based wine or at least Surah has quite a lot of dominance in This blend and as it is in that price Category it probably is a quarter one And Kotor one is such a great wine when It comes to Value it’s amazing how many Really really good Fine Wines are sold At really low prices in this code your Own appellation I also would recommend This one I don’t think it’s the best Kojo one I’ve ever tasted but I would Rate it 88 points I think it’s pretty Good stuff and I’d say it’s from a specialist let’s Have a look oh I know the neck label so Let’s see what The rest reveals yeah so this is from This from a specialist it’s Paul jabuli Anis From the
2019 vintage retails for eight Euros or Eight dollars which is a pretty fair Price It’s good stuff Good stuff Jubilee is one of the most Well-known houses in the room they’re Producing some of the best wines and They’re also producing really solid Entry-level wines like this one I’m not Really sure whether this tasting is Going to get any better than this but Let’s find out why number six All up in the mix Sorry oh this is certainly quite a bit Lighter than the previous one it looks Almost pale I can see my fingers through That so this is a really strange one It’s very pale in color the fruit flavor Is very pronounced it’s almost Artificial so you have like almost gummy Bear character Fruits in there and on the pad it’s Really I mean there’s not much going on There’s very little tannins the acidity Isn’t very pronounced when it comes to Pear colored red grape varieties often Go for Pinot Noir or ganache that Sometimes there as well but I don’t Think this is any of those grape Varieties I’m actually going to say that This is a vernache from the north of Italy and Um Yeah I think I mean it’s well made wine
But I don’t think it’s very profound it’s a Bit boring really I would rate this 78 points and I’m going to say this is From the Discounter Oh So I was really wrong here so this is a Badulino from Italy it retails for 6.50 And it’s from a specialist so yeah could This have been sold by the discount I Guess so but on the other hand after Reflecting upon it I gotta say this is Maybe such a special taste that it Wouldn’t work in a Discounter because Well if people buy a red one they expect It to be rich red dark colored and Intense and this is just not it so Specialists might be able to explain That one a little bit more before people Buy it and are disappointed that they’re Not getting what they are they’ve paid For so wine number seven It’s definitely darker than Wine number Six the contrast couldn’t be more stuck Between my number six and one number Seven this is super concentrated super Rich very intense flavors there’s lots Of Oaky flavors coming through coconuts Blackberries raisins it’s just Everything there and then the tenons are Really intense as also some acidity There Yeah so it’s quite different because of
The really rich fruit character and Especially because of the American Oak Character and the vanilla the coconut Flavor that are coming through here Plus the slightly Yeah slightly rough rustic texture and The tannins are a little bit harsh I Actually think that this is from the Iberian Peninsula I’d probably go to Spain I think it could be from La Mancha For example it could be from Rioja even Though I think the color and Concentration is just a bit too high Here could also be from further down South it is just over extracted overly Concentrated I don’t really enjoy this This is just a bit too much of Everything I’m going to rate this 75 points this feels like there all the Elements were there but it was just made In Um in too much haste or in just not the Right way so I’m going to say this is From a Discounter again but there are Lots of wines that Specialists sell as Well that taste like that I mean this Oak Oak and ripe fruit character that’s Something that appeals to a lot of People so Specialists carry that as well But I’m just going to say this is Another discount one let’s check it out So yeah it’s from from Spain it’s from Aldi and it retails for seven euros so A win for me to finish this off I gotta
Say this was one of the most difficult Tastings I’ve done on this channel and That’s because the lines are blurred There are not so many differences Between the wines sold at Aldi and the Wine sold in specialist retailers when You look at the same price category I Think aldia has done quite a lot in Other Discounters as well done quite a Lot in order to improve the quality and Especially at the lower end they are Doing really well today and specialists I mean they’re good and bad Specialists So so there are some that also find Really great Wines in this difficult Category and there are some that don’t So um I think it’s Not an easy comparison and I think it’s Not necessarily something that I would Be reliably able to pick out in a blind Tasting but nevertheless I managed to Get through it and my favorite wine of The tasting was definitely this wine Sold by a specialist for whatever it’s Worth I think this is definitely Something worth drinking I’m not sure About the other ones they didn’t really Excite me so I won’t be drinking them Over dinner tonight this one I will one More thing before I wrap it up I noticed There’s sometimes quite a lot of spam Comments below my videos Bots that Promise you all kinds of crazy gifts and Use my name don’t send them any money
And please do report them make sure that They get stopped I’m trying to stop them As well it’s really annoying and I don’t Really know why YouTube doesn’t get on Top of that but anyways please help me Stop those guys and Don’t pay them anything so thank you for Watching if you like this video then Please like it down here subscribe to my Channel if you haven’t done so already My question of the day is what do you Think well Aldi and the other Discounters ever be able to out compete Specialists in terms of quality let me Know your thoughts comment down below I Hope I see you guys again soon until Then stay thirsty [Music] Thank you