Burgundy, is it okay to taste but not buy?

A couple of things. While that may be the expectation you can always do the unexpected. You don't have to buy the bottle. By my standard the wines are reasonably price but then I think most wines are reasonably priced or at least the ones I consider. Most of the wines you will taste, unless it is a big name producer, will not be available in the US. Most are regional wines with very limited production and distribution. Good luck.

Although your questions are sensible, I think you should realize that your words "reasonably" and "overpriced" are not "factual" terms. They are "opinions." That means that you may assign different numbers than someone else would. But are you "right"?

Will you need to finish a tasting sample to determine that it doesn't thrill you? Will you taste as many wines as they are willing to present to you? Are you able to describe what you would like better, so they can adjust what they offer next? (I'm not that good with wine-words!)

Would you agree that a "reasonable" price is different at a Chevrolet dealer than at a Mercedes dealer? Have you ever bought a bottle at a winery? Were you glad when you got it home? Do you know how much a bottle of wine "should" cost in Burgundy?

Why buy if you don't like what you are tasting? Why not buy if you like what you are tasting and the price matches your budget? I enjoy wine and having visited a number of boutique wineries in the Okanagan Valley and some beautiful wineries in California...came away generally disappointed in the offerings. Many "ordinary" red wines served in Spain and Italy, plus most whites in the Mosel River area, suit my uneducated tastes.

We stopped by several (beautiful) wineries that charged for the tasting. The wines were excellent, but we ddn't feel obligated to buy.

It all depends. If the tasting is at the end of winery tour then not, but you can still buy. If you come just for free tasting then yes, they would appreciate if you buy. It's like with the service in restaurant, you leave tip. If it was miserable, you won't.
Nowadays most wineries around here and California charge for tasting and if you buy they deduct that price from your purchase. I don't know if most wineries in France, Italy, Spain are charging for tasting. I know that in Czech Republic most wineries don't charge but expect you to buy.

I should only taste if you have actually the plan to buy wine and be honoust to yourself and the winery and only buy the one you really like. But if you are going to taste just for the fun say that to the winery and agree with eachother you want to pay for it. And ask before how much a drink or a bottle will cost so you can decide drinking something or not. If the winery nevertheless say the drinks are free feel free to taste a few wines.

Look up the wineries' websites that you're interested in trying, and check to see if there is a tasting fee or not.
There is never any pressure to buy a bottle, though serious wine drinkers often buy by the case.

Same answer as Ilja's. If it's a small family business and they're taking time out of their day for you, yes you should buy. If it's a large group tour of a winery with a limited tasting at the end, you aren't obligated.

Thanks for the responses. By reasonably priced I mean a $25 quality bottle of wine costs $25, a $15 quality bottle of wine costs $15. I've noticed many wineries (particularly here in Va) want $40-50 for a wine I wouldn't pay $15 for in a store.

I doubt I'd want to spend more than 25 euro per bottle because I've found plenty of wines I like in stores all over the European Union for no more than that. I like to support small local producers, but there's a limit. Locally produced wine in Spain was a bargain.

I do know what kind of wines I enjoy and can describe them, so I can narrow down what I'd like to try. Personally, I'd rather pay for a tasting then decide, sans expectations, whether I'd like to purchase any.

Brad that's not my experience with wineries at all. In the Finger Lakes of NY you can get the releases you find in the NYC stores, at the same price, and you can also get many other cuvees that are not available anywhere else.

In Europe, unless you are tasting at an enormous industrial wine tourist trap, I'd expect there you would pay considerably less (sometimes half price) of the retail market. I was just reading a thread yesterday on Cellar Tracker about tastings at wineries in Piedmond, Italy, where spectacular nebbiolos were selling for a third of their retail cost. So I'm not sure your experiences in VA are that common.

Brad, bottle of the same wine cost less in winery because middle man is eliminated. From my own experience I can say that at least about Washington State, California, Czech Republic. Now all states except Alaska are growing and making wine. Obviously you cannot expect the same quality in Virginia like let's say in California or Washington State.

Yes, Finger Lakes was cheap. The wine was horrible, but at least it was $5 a bottle. Up in Niagara, the wine isn't much better but very pricey. :-)

I like wines from Washington/Oregon (Columbia Valley) and California (from Napa to Central Coast). Never had anything from Czech Republic. My favorite wines in Spain were in the Valdepenas area, but most of their export is from Rioja region.

I concur with Bets and Illja. In my experience, all of the wines we tasted and bought in Burgundy were well priced, and truly delicious. You might consider spending a day with a private wine guide who will take to you to quality domaines where you can be assured you are tasting very good wine. We used Max's Wine tour. He is based in Dijon but covers all of Burgundy. He picked us up in Volnay. If you don't know much about wine, consider watching a couple of documentaries about it. There is one on Netflix called "A Year in Burgundy," which I recommend so you have some knowledge going in.

I would want to buy at least one to have with a picnic lunch or dinner to remember and savor - so to speak - the experience again the next day. I would be very surprised - I could be wrong -- if I didn't find at least one wine that I enjoyed. You're in French wine country. :)

Here's a pretty good site for Burgundy area.

Beaune Wine Tourism

I've only been to a couple of the Finger Lakes wineries and my experience with them were much better than yours.