Why oh Why do we buy expensive bottles of wine?

Another huge mistake in my wine buying. Tonight, to start the (one-year long) celebration of my wonderful spouse's 60th birthday, we opened a 2012 Talenti Brunello di Montalcino with wonderful eggplant parmesan. This wine is $70 retail and got 95 points from Spectator and Robert Parker, who said:

Riccardo Talenti and his family have crafted a bold and deeply saturated wine. The 2012 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Pian di Conte shows a contemporary side with soft cherry aromas followed by sweet spice and dark chocolate. It also delivers some of those tangy balsamic and licorice-like aromas that are so specific to Sangiovese from Montalcino. You get power as well as a good dose of authenticity with this age-worthy Riserva.

Well, I'll tell you what. This wine is pretty disgusting. In desperation we opened a $12 Montepulciano as a backup, which far outshone this Brunello. The Brunello has some Brett, and its flavors are dark and bitter. Nothing to like there. Oh my, was I an idiot. My former boss from 25 years ago sung the praises of Brunellos, so I collected many of the better ones, and guess what? The emperor has no clothes. This is amazing--Brunellos are supposed to mature into things of wonder, whereas this wine must've been good when young, but now it's disgusting.

As I've said forever, "any idiot can overpay for wine. It takes no skill at all. What is difficult is buying good wines at low prices." Shame on me. Waste of money.

I urger you all to buy your good wines down in the $12-$20 price range. With careful selection, you won't be disappointed, and you will be much richer.

The Monty we opened is a very sub-par one (2016 La Villa), and yet it was far better, at all of $12. 

Think, and learn, from my many mistakes!

May I review my own wine? 2017 Epona "Rosso Misto"

Rosso Misto means "mixed red" in Italian, and I made this wine from three modern grape varieties, all grown here at the Epona Vineyard: Mindon, Regent, and Delicatessen.

This is really good!
Color: Clear; pretty red.
Bouquet: Very nice rustic, cherry nose, with flowers. I'm proud of that bouquet.
Palate: Medium body, with a touch of heft, but this is a lighter, more-elegant wine. Pleasing balance. Moderate tannins. Nice fruit notes.  I give this wine a solid "B" and it's fun to drink!

Champagne: Montaudon Grande Rose - a great bottle, but not cheap

Well, this is a really good sparkling wine. It should be, as it's not cheap (about $45 at Total Wine). What I loved about it was its smoothness, which is very unusual in most sparkling wines. Acid is present but not as much as I expected, and the red fruit flavors are sumptuous. 90 points from Wine Spectator. No yeasty/bread notes, which you see in more-expensive Champagnes. A real pleasure to drink, with fresh Dungeoness Crab. At that price, not sure I'll buy it again.