Heavier wine bottles demand steeper prices no matter what’s inside: study

No matter how much wine is inside, heavier bottles help sell it at higher prices suggests a new study.

Researchers found that in a survey of 150 people, consumers tended to believe that the heavier bottle of wine was more expensive than the better bottle of wine.

The study concludes that heavier bottles these days might not be for the altruistic task of protecting the contents inside from breakage.

"In wine it may have been [historically] that the more expensive wines were in heavier bottles to prevent breakage," said Charles Spence of Oxford University, reported the Telegraph.

"Today I think it is definitely done more with marketing in mind than preservation of the contents."

The study asked the 150 people to what extent they agreed with the statement that heavier bottles would likely be more expensive than high quality bottles of wine, reported ThisIsMoney.

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The study further demonstates how weight often signifies value in the human brain.

Researchers said that drinking wine out of a heavier glass has the ability to make it taste better as well.

The lesson of the study is this: be careful what you drink and why you're drinking it in the first place.

"It is something to be cautious about," said Spence, reported the Telegraph.

"Sometimes you see people wandering around a shop with a few bottles in their hands and weighing them up while deciding which one is better. If you know about this, you are less likely to be manipulated by these subconscious cues."

The study was published in the journal Food Quality and Preference.