What compares to storebought?

Generally speaking most wines that we and all our friends will drink are white wines. We buy the Woodbridge, Mondavi and the other California type "popular" or common wines. IIRC the ones we get range in price between $8-$12 a bottle.

If I wanted to make a kit wine that was similar in taste and quality to one of these types, what would I be looking at in price range? The local places here sell Vintners Reserve and the prices start at about $60, then there are a few at like $90, then $100, then a bunch about $130. Even with a $130 kit, you are still looking at like $5 a bottle max. So, I'm kinda wondering if the $100 kits would be similar in quality to what you would see in the store at the price ranges we buy?

I assume that a lot of the cost of storebought wines is not only in markup, but the cost of aging the wines.

Well, I can only tell you in generalities since I've only made a few kits, and never an expensive white kit. The more expensive kits tend to have better ingredients, especially the "crushendo" series. They have grape skins in them, and tend to make a better product. They are usually in the $130-145 range. If I wanted to make a nice wine that would age about 2 years before drinking, that's the one I'd choose. That would probably be like a $12-$15 bottle like you describe.

The moderate ones are usually good, but not excellent. They won't have the crushed grape skins, and will be drinkable in about a year or so, depending on the type. A bold red will still need some aging, but a white will be ready sooner than the big bold red. My best estimate is a $10 bottle.

The cheap ones (ala Vintner's Reserve) are fine. They run $50-70 and come with concentrated grape juice. They are called "30 day kits" because they are generally ready to bottle in 30 days, and good to drink in as little as 2-4 months. In a different thread today, we were talking about these kits, and I think it was Wade who commented that this kits have no body, no legs, and no tannin. I agree with this- but my best friend LOVES these kits because they are rather bland easy drinking kits. I make them, and use them for dinner wines for my husband and me. I would not serve these to guests except out by the pool for refreshments. This might translate to a $5-$7 bottle, like Concha Y Toro or one of those.

I only drink red wines as a rule, so I'm giving you my experiences with the reds (and a little knowledge I've picked up from some others who make the whites.)