Varies/Vary Between Brands

[learningspirit]

I have a question about these:

1. "The taste of milk varies between brands."
2. "The tastes of milk vary between brands."

Is one of them wrong?

 

[probus]

1. is correct and 2. is not.

But there is another problem, at least in the North American context. Milk has become a commodity; therefore brands do not matter. Pretty much, milk is milk, and brand makes no difference. Its taste does not vary.

 

[learningspirit]

How about these:

3. "The taste of milk varies from brand to brand."
4. "The taste of milk varies among brands."

?

 

[probus]

Same answer. Both are now grammatically correct but meaningless because brand remains irrelevant when it comes to milk.