Just got another release email with pricing. $125 for a 750 bottling but $312 for the magnum. A nearly 25% markup! For what? I get the bottling may cost slightly more, but come on now, not THAT much more. Seems to me that wineries know that magnum buyers tend to be more of the collector type, and they are engaging in price gauging.
Yep. Are you contractually obligated to buy the magnum? If no, no sweat.
There’s a nice discussion on this in Cellar Rats. In short, it’s not just more expensive glass. Additional labor costs, and depending on the label, additional labeling costs. Are they charging a premium? Sure. But it’s not as simple to say a magnum is twice as much as a 750.
Great thread because I have some strong thoughts on this one!
I love buying mags and other large formats. I think they’re super fun to have for special occasions. My general expectation for buying a mag is actually around 20 - 25% above the 750 price (speaking generally about good napa cab). So if the 750 is $200, then I typically expect to pay between $450 and $500.
However there are some out there that really tough to swallow. I can think of a number of high end cab makers that actually charge over 50% and up to 70% more for their Mags, and don’t even get me started on their even larger formats!
Now that doesn’t mean that I have ever ponied up for some very expensive mags, but usually then it’s a function of scarcity. If I know the magnums are very very hard to come by, I am potentially willing to pay up, but usually then it’s a wine by wine decision.
The aforementioned notwithstanding, it is always really special when there is little or no mark up for large formats. Saxum I think is a good example.
It’s all relative, but in the end it’s another fun layer on top of everything.
Costs £10 a case more for Bordeaux ep in the UK, same for halves.
Is this similar to price gouging??
View the other thread. Real talk from real winemakers. Valid question as to why mags cost more but there is a lot more economic factors that go into the actual pricing of the larger formats.
Also if people want to pay more for trophy (size) bottles, so be it. Ball out with abandon.
gouging may be a strong word, and it probably doesn’t apply in this case. I guess we just chalk it up to supply/demand and price inelasticity! Econ 101 coming back on a Friday morning I guess
I had a conversation with a friend on this topic last week. What markup over the cost of 2 750’s is reasonable?
There are extra costs, such as:
- Bigger Bottle
- Labor - often need to be done by hand, often waxed while the 750 may not be
- Labeling - small batch print runs cost more
- Bigger Boxes
- Takes up more storage space
- Costs more to ship
Then basic demand economics comes into play as Brian noted. This is the biggest factor driving up the price. Because they can successfully charge more it makes good sense to do just that.
For those actively pricing & selling magnums. What margins have you found to work vs. not?
I used to sell bottles. Half bottles cost about 65% of the regular bottles. But each bottle needs a cork, a label and a foil. The winery may also need change parts for their bottling line…$5 to 10K.
With magnums it’s not the glass but the change parts and they may need to have special labels printed so the bottle doesn t look stupid. If there are no change parts available, then bottling is done by hand.
But a $62 supplement??
With rare exceptions, I’ve stopped buying magnums because of the excessive mark-up. Too bad, they are great for large dinner parties.
Buying magnums is like trying to get milk, ice, or toilet paper after a Florida hurricane.
There should be a law.
At the very least, it should be investigated by…
"750 vs magnum pricing- ANNOYING/GAUGING!"
Magnums are so over priced, nobody buys them any more.
Getting back to the OP, Google “gauging” and hit ‘images.’ 
Gauging, or gouging?
Both are pretty annoying.
For what I’ve seen, magnums (and larger formats) can have some real value when it comes to BDX futures. Of course that comes with it’s own headaches and is another can of worms entirely.
Some wineries have some amazing annual deals on larger format bottles. Patricia Green comes to mind. I bought 2 5L bottles for my wedding during one such sale 2 years ago. With the discount they provided, the cost was the 750ml bottle equivalent (no markup). Now THAT was awesome.
Something to consider if you are purchasing Magnums from the winery, the secondary market places little-to-no premium on larger formats - unless the bottle in question extremely rare and the brand enjoys international demand. (translation: almost nothing made in California) At this moment, Screagle Mags and 3L SQN are the only two examples that come to mind as breaking the trend.
There was a time when larger bottles might demand a premium similar to what many wineries charge, but that time has long past - same thing goes for verticals.
You may have a notarized succession plan in place for every bottle in your cellar, but you should never rationalize the purchase of large formats expecting an increase in value at a faster pace than 750s.
My general rule of thumb is to get the odd formats when they are priced on an equivalent basis to the 750ml format. I think they are ‘worth’ more so that’s usually a safe bet.
One of the rare rationale for bdx futures, assuming the merchant can actually get the odd format. have had problems with that falling through and 750ml being delivered. (that’s from non premier cru providers)