Identifying the Effects of Objective and Subjective Quality on Wine Prices*

This study examines a framework developed by Cardebat, Figuet, and Paroissien in a 2014 Journal of Wine Economics article for identifying the impacts of both objective and subjective quality on wine prices. We recognize how various specifications are observationally equivalent and that the interpretation of model estimates depends crucially on the posited assumption for the relation between price and objective and subjective quality. The proposed framework is applied to Australian premium wines. Results indicate that the price impact of expert personal opinions is similar to the impact of objective quality as estimated via weather, vintage, and producer fixed effects. The relative importance of objective quality compared with subjective quality depends crucially on the ability of expert scores to accurately reflect objective quality. (JEL Classifications: C21, Q11, Q54)