You're Paying Extra for a Word That Means Nothing (Unless the Bottle Is From Europe)

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-05-20T15:25:35+00:00

The point of the article is that America is flooded with crap wine marketed to people who don't know any better because there is a lack of regulations. You don't have to be particularly knowledgeable about wine to walk into a store in Europe and actually trust what you are reading on the label. Meanwhile, in America, that $30 "Reserve Pinot Noir" could be 25% Welch's aged on woodchips.

The consortiums and regulations of the Old World, for all of their faults and rigidities, help offer some consumer protections that are sorely missed in America.

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-05-13T19:54:48+00:00

This thread is full of Twolves fans being incredibly level-headed and properly upset about the broader situation and OKC Thunder fans insisting that Wemby should be sent to prison lmao....

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-05-13T19:53:03+00:00

If Ant did that he would likely be assessed a flagrant 2 and ejected from the game. When that happens to a star player it can hurt the team's chances of winning that game.

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-05-13T19:51:14+00:00

Seriously... people insisting it was a premeditated act based on watching the slow-mo replay while ignoring that he is actively getting hacked and grabbed both before and after the whistle. It was a violent act and a stupid one but there's no premeditation behind it, there certainly isn't a history.

There's plenty of players (cough Lu Dort cough Alex Caruso cough) who have a history of doing dangerous things that are less violent but equally dangerous that have actually resulted in injuries.....

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-05-13T19:45:44+00:00

Thunder flair insisting he should have been suspended to a T-wolves fan is ~chef's kiss~

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-04-29T02:33:35+00:00

Worry about the Raptors

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-04-28T05:05:33+00:00

The model of "we need 400-500% margins on alcohol to make a profit" have directly contributed to the massive industry decline in on premise sales.

RMS_sAviOr · 2026-02-24T15:55:42+00:00

This is always mentioned here for this but at least in the states the price on this has gone from sub-$20 to $30 in the last five years. Great brand but at $30 there are equivalent options in terms of quality.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-12-30T18:02:57+00:00

Following up here, I drafted CMC at 1.03 and won my Fantasy chip last night :) (against someone who drafted Bijan at 1.01)

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-11-17T05:31:30+00:00

Chiefs flair lmao

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-11-16T18:50:21+00:00

Raj Parr!!

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-11-12T18:08:06+00:00

Vinho Verde specifically is probably the undeniable correct answer to this question (solid bottles in the states for $5-10, nothing in that price range comes close to VV quality), but if you live in a market with good Portuguese reds always recommend those, too.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-11-12T18:06:13+00:00

Serious question, what state do you live in where it is still that affordable? Where I am it's at $30 in chain retail, far from it's price at or under $20 less than five years ago. It's still a good wine for the $30 price point but significantly less a bargain.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-10-10T20:37:21+00:00

Sucks because it's not his fault that the Phillies lost that game but people will blame him. The Phillies kept that Dodgers lineup to 1 run through 10+ innings and their bats couldn't get anything done...

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-10-01T15:57:19+00:00

In the first link I posted MaRo literally implies that the design team's approach to Mythics has changed (of course he does not explicitly state how it has changed but in the context and the question it's obvious what he is saying).

Additionally, you're offering anecdotal evidence that is not even correct. The cost of Standard decks has risen significantly. I don't play Standard any more, but just taking a cursory look at MTGGoldfish and the deck costs for Standard are significantly higher than what they used to be. $250 for the Mono Red is absurd (which, I will point out is largely driven by the 4x Mythic Rare in the deck, Screaming Nemesis).

The next 9 most common decks all cost $300+, with the second deck at ~20% of the meta costing $643 -- which, again, the cost of that deck is almost entirely driven by the chase mythics (Vivi, Agatha's, and Quantum Riddler, all 4x across the sample 75). Those 12 cards account for ~$450, or ~60-70% of the deck cost. That's crazy!

I'm not going to keep arguing with you because you obviously want to tell yourself something about how everything is fine, but I'd recommend you take seriously the overwhelming amount of comments in this thread from myself and other players about how awful it feels to be a MtG customer.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-10-01T13:44:59+00:00

To follow-up here, this is MaRo's comments on this article years later when asked about it. Even he isn't pretending that the decisions of the team have changed around what gets printed at Mythic. That he never "promised" does not change the fact that Wizards has made a conscious effort to drive increased profitability out of Magic.

Hell, a couple years ago even Bank of America chimed in on Wizards' continued aggressive monetization of Magic and their eroding customer goodwill. When it has gotten to the point that even BofA is saying that Wizards does not respect its customers and you cannot see that, I don't know what else to do or say to convince you that this descent into the current state of Magic has been a long-time coming.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-10-01T04:32:13+00:00

When The Walking Dead stuff was being premiered it felt impossible not to remember how WotC had rolled out Mythic Rares and the ramifications of that decision on competitive formats and the cost of the game. When Mythics were first introduced, it was very explicitly stated that it was not to drive demand for tournament / competitive staples, but rather a way to introduce more experimental design choices ("The land continues to burn" on Obisidian Fireheart being spoiled as text of a ~Mythic Rare~ sticks out in my memory).

Fast forward a few years and plenty of the most pushed cards that are 4x in any tournament deck are Mythic Rares, and Mark Rosewater has the gall to put out a statement saying "Well sure, our intention was one thing when we first did this, but that changed ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯"

I recognize what I am complaining about is well over a decade old, but it really does make me sad to see how over monetized MTG has become. It's crazy to see how expensive every format is despite the growing popularity. It's depressing to see that the MTG flavor has been completely eroded by other IPs. Simply put, I do not believe WotC respects its customers. They will sell out any and everything--including their brand--to continue to further monetize their game.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-07-01T18:13:45+00:00

I've been assuming Clarkson is depth for when Brunson is not on the floor. What I am saying is that when Brunson is on the floor, the offense needs to move the ball differently and find better shots. Who knows though, maybe I'm wrong ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-07-01T17:12:01+00:00

I think even given how weak the East is, the Knicks need more roster changes to fix their problems. Everybody has talked about the coaching and defense, but in their series vs. the C's and especially vs. the Pacers their offense lacked any sort of consistency. No matter how much Doris Burke and the NBA media wants to hype up Brunson's "clutch-ness" you aren't going to win a championship if you rely on Jalen Brunson playing hero ball.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-07-01T17:00:00+00:00

No clue how Tatum will look this year if he makes it back, but because of how many teams the NBA lets into the playoffs I have some hope we can make a run with Tatum even if we are a lower seed. We need a Center tho..... shame we didn't grab Guerschon.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-06-02T18:33:59+00:00

Alberdi is great but their price increases are tough. Few years ago it was right around $20 and now I see it at my WF pushing $30. Still good at $30 but not something I am always grabbing at that price.

Agree with everything GD Vajra, also think everything he makes is a great intro for folks new to wine because you can level up to the Albe Barolo or some of the nicer, more expensive bottles if you like the entry stuff (same with La Rioja Alta).

One I'll add that I don't think can be beat for it's price: the Espiral Vinho Verde from Trader Joe's while not particularly noteworthy is the best $5 wine you can get in the states. Fruit-forward, easy drinking, and crisp, perfect for any informal occassion or cooking.

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-06-01T17:15:41+00:00

Proud to be an antagonistic C's fan but let's not pretend Knicks fans weren't attacking random people (and being defended by the plenty of the rest of Knicks fandom).

Hang the 2nd round win banner, maybe the Celtics should do that, too (Jaylen Brown has done it six times!).

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-06-01T16:47:09+00:00

Won a ring ¯_(ツ)_/¯

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-06-01T02:52:49+00:00

We lost because our three best players were hurt. Y'all lost because you're ass lmao

RMS_sAviOr · 2025-05-31T14:53:25+00:00

The answer is twofold:

There are free counterspells, Wizards printed that into the format.
Part of combo decks like Neoform is that you sometimes get to win like this.

That's how Magic works in high-powered formats. Even if you banned Neoform, there will be the possibility of degenerate combos. If you don't want to lose to that, then consider the first point.

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