The obvious answer is because it can. But after willfully ignoring this for more than 20 years, it’s been on my mind. No, I’m not talking about Burgs with a 50 case production. I’ve been buying Tignanello for at least 15 years. It’s a very large production wine and is now up to $129 retail locally. Millions of bottles of Dom Perignon are produced but they have no trouble getting top dollar for their product. It seems to me that either premium whisky is seriously under-priced or there are a lot of wines vastly over-priced.
Have you seen the prices of top shelf aged whiskey and single-malt?
If you are comparing dollar-for-dollar, hard to make the case otherwise, aged single malt Scotch is the best QPR on the planet. And like fine wine, each quality producer is so distinct. Love the stuff.
Touching side note to me, my son just turned 21. We were staying at the Mandarin in Miami over his birthday weekend. He went out with his cousins after dinner on his birthday, came back to the hotel around midnight. Went to the bar and started sampling some faves like Macallan, Oban and a bourbon with a friendly bartender there that learned that night was his 21st. Ran up quite a bar tab, but the next morning, told me he wanted to experience what I experience, and said he gets it. Was a nice connection. My dad introduced me to the elegance of fine wine and spirits, and moderation and it remains a deep-seeded connection today. My son and I enjoyed burgers and wine tonight.
I recently bought a Signatory bottling of 25 year old Ben Nevis for less than a bottle of “Kravitz” Dom Perignon.
The biggest difference is that these days I have a hell of a time downing a whole bottle of single malt or bourbon/rye, whereas a bottle of really fine wine over an evening isn’t as much of a challenge.
(OK–this is a joke. But why do I have a mental hurdle about buying a $150 bottle of scotch or bourbon, that will last a month or two or three, and jump at a similarly priced bottle of fine wine that I will have to age for 15 years and kill in a night?)
Because it’s very cheap to grow corn and wheat and you can grow them almost everywhere, have you ever been to midwest? Grapes require much much more TLC and better the land higher the prices. 1 acre of land in midwest is from $5k to $10K for prime land. Prime land of vineyard costs you upwards of 500K.
Vineyards require much more work than do corn fields.
Try the cost of Barrels, average price is $1,000, Whiskey producers get them for $50 or less…
Most of wines have shelf life, whiskey doesn’t.
I was shopping for a special bourbon to get for a Christmas present and the prices on aged bourbon at least were incredibly high - 18 years from respected producers seemed to be in the $350-1,000+ range, unaffordable from my perspective. I was kind of shocked because it didn’t used to be this way. So at least for aged bourbon I think the answer is that they don’t cost more
Leo, your points are valid as to why wine costs more. They are equally valid as to why I currently drink as much, if not more, bourbon than wine these days.
Sounds like a great night. Wonderful.
OP just drinks crappy whisky.
Apparently the paradigm shifts at around 50 years-
I think Leo hit the nail somewhat on the head (even if he got the grain wrong…at least when it comes to Scotch). To his points, I’ll add that most whisky (and even bourbon) houses are of an age where they’ve recouped sunk-in costs so they can afford to price their products at lower numbers.
There’s a reason why I said Whiskey instead of Whisky, it was much easier for me to illustrate that “grains” are a commodity that can be produced almost anywhere, dirt cheap and always available thus the midwest example and American Whiskey Bourbon.
Great point about the recouped sunk-in costs!
I’m not much of a spirit drinker as for some reason if I have them in excess they give me a headache while wine doesn’t. I do have a soft spot for Oban Scotch and for about $70 it doesn’t break the bank either.
Your son is one sly guy! Apparently a step or two ahead of the old man too! He learned well.
Next time I’m in Florida I’m going to want to experience what you experience. I’ll just tell them to put it on your tab! 
I started to wonder this myself a few years ago as I ramped up my wine budget. I started drinking a lot more cocktails once I realized I was in the mood to feel buzzed rather than taste wine. Don’t love whiskey alone unless you count an Old Fashioned.
The price of any commodity is driven by two factors: supply and demand. I’m guessing the demand curve is much steeper for wine than it is for whisky so it commands a higher price. So in that regard, you essentially nailed it in your initial post… “because they can.”
To be a bourbon, the whiskey must be aged in a new fully charred oak barrel. Those barrels are no less expensive than the new barrels used by wine producers. Scotch makers most often use used neutral barrels in conjunction with perhaps used bourbon or sherry barrels for finishing. Those used barrels are less expensive than new ones. Wine makers use used and neutral barrels also.
I don’t know the exact chemistry at work, but I’ve heard several bourbon brewers say that a good bourbon should be consumed within ten (10) years of bottling. After that it will start to lose its flavors. Probably not much different from a tawny port.
Whisky sales in US are $18B per year.
Sales of US-made wine was $47B. Foreign-made wine $23B. $70B total.
In addition, one bottle of whisky goes a long way. Wine goes a for a night. Thus, you need more product to satiate demand for when people wish to actually… drink it.
Supply… demand.
I bet 1/2 or more of all wine sold in this country sells for under $10/bottle. Is that true of whisky?
I’ve also heard that because of the new American oak, 8-12 years is the sweet spot for Bourbon.