My FIL allowed me to open one of his special bottled to serve with when I made him his favourite osso buco. Crociani Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva. He explained that it was special because it was hand made without the use of powders that people sadly use to adjust the flavours nowadays to make bad wine drinkable.

I would have thought it was only "4 buck chuck" wines that were made that way and that anything that is natively 10$+ is "special" according to his definition (by natively I mean the winery reference price, not a crazy import-taxed price).

I checked his special bottle and it is pretty cheap; 17euro in current vintages 2009.

Anyone have insight how common it is to use "powders" to adjust bad taste?