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Expensive = Better?

Does cost always correlate with quality? That would obviously depends on the commodity in question. People have researched this topic as it pertains to water(bottled vs. tap, bottled vs. bottled), wine, and vodka. Blind tastings for water, vodka and wine have largely concluded that the average person can't detect the difference between most cheap and expensive brands. The answer to whether expensive wine, vodka, and bottled water are really better has been an emphatic no. But, the mere thought of drinking something expensive elicits a better sense of enjoyment. Of course, connoisseurs have developed a more refined taste for what is good and what is not. But for the average Joe, expensive=better is simply a placebo effect.

I am a heavy coffee drinker and I have evaluated whether my preference for certain Starbucks blends over generic brands (Folgers, Maxwell House ...) was real or an object of my imagination. It turns out it is real. I can tell apart generic brands from Starbucks by taste. People I serve my Starbucks coffee to at home do often tell the difference and comment on it. So, expensive coffee is really better from my experience.coffee.

Take that all you high-fluting socialites and aristocrats!!

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