A survey was recently taken with 578 drinkers at the Edinburgh International Science Festival. The participants sampled a variety of red and white wines in a blind taste test with prices ranging from about $6 to $50. The results concluded that people could only tell the difference between cheap and expensive white wines 53% of the time, and 47% of the time for red wines. 50% average is equal to a guess.
This backs up a study from a few years ago, which showed that individuals who are unaware of the price do not derive more enjoyment from more expensive wine. That survey of 6,000 blind tastings showed that the correlation between price and overall rating is small and negative, suggesting that individuals on average enjoy more expensive wines slightly less. Bottom line - wine does not have to be expensive to taste good.