Champagne Taste On A Beer Budget Meaning

(idiomatic) Expensive wants or preferences which one lacks the finances to fulfill satisfactorily.

Example: 1970 May 2, "SP Travel: Parisians enjoy eating-out but it becomes costly," Saskatoon Star-Phoenix (Canada), p. 8 (retrieved 26 July 2011):
  The traveller who expects to satisfy a champagne taste on a beer budget in this food-conscious city may be in for a disappointment.
1994 Sep. 12, "Editorial: School board has used up taxes, excuses," Kentucky New Era (USA), p. 4A (retrieved 26 July 2011):
  The fact is the school system has spent itself into debt, at least partly by exhibiting a champagne taste on a beer budget.
2002, Robert Irwin, How to Buy a Home When You Can't Afford It, ISBN 9780071385183, p. 22:
  We would all like to live in a palatial estate with a dozen bedrooms and as many bathrooms. Having champagne taste on a beer budget is nothing new. However, be realistic.