A likeable blog
05/02/07 13:56 Coffee machine moments
Just seen BBC economics correspondent Evan Davis' new
blog. As you'd expect from a
professional journalist it's well-written
although his brief is so far-reaching I wonder
how thorough he'll be able to make it over the
coming weeks?
The best entry and the most commented-upon so far, inevitably, is the one about the price of wine. Davis applies simple economics to buying - if it's expensive then it's bound to be good, in other words.
Well, up to a point. The duty on wine is fixed so if you buy one bottle at £4 and another at £8 then the £8 bottle actually has well over twice the value of wine in it compared to the £4 version.
It's not that straightforward, however. I might understand that a sweet Sauterne is superbly crafted, for example, but I still wouldn't touch it because I can't stand the stuff. Then there are the so-called bargains. A lot of my friends have been buying wines at 50 per cent less than their RRP lately and have been surprised that they're not that great. It's not until someone points out that something that wouldn't shift for the original price is likely to have been overinflated in the first place that the penny drops.
My own instinct is to try something and then decide whether you like it or not, and if you really like it, keep a note somewhere. Call me old-fashioned but it seems to work.
The best entry and the most commented-upon so far, inevitably, is the one about the price of wine. Davis applies simple economics to buying - if it's expensive then it's bound to be good, in other words.
Well, up to a point. The duty on wine is fixed so if you buy one bottle at £4 and another at £8 then the £8 bottle actually has well over twice the value of wine in it compared to the £4 version.
It's not that straightforward, however. I might understand that a sweet Sauterne is superbly crafted, for example, but I still wouldn't touch it because I can't stand the stuff. Then there are the so-called bargains. A lot of my friends have been buying wines at 50 per cent less than their RRP lately and have been surprised that they're not that great. It's not until someone points out that something that wouldn't shift for the original price is likely to have been overinflated in the first place that the penny drops.
My own instinct is to try something and then decide whether you like it or not, and if you really like it, keep a note somewhere. Call me old-fashioned but it seems to work.
|