Wine Ratings
Wine Ratings
One of my biggest frustrations when assisting people in purchasing wine is the singular focus on the “rating” of the wine whether on the label neck itself, a shelf talker, or the many downloadable apps for your smartphone.
While working retail I heard countless times a comment from someone like, “… I would not be able to taste the difference between an 89-point wine and a 93-point wine…” My response to them was, “you are probably correct. Neither could I”.
Probably my number one goal in why this website and the services I offer is to dispel the mystery of wine, how to purchase it, and what food to pair with it. But accomplishing this in a grounded fashion to provide you with the most practical, thoughtful, and least time-consuming process for your wine purchases.
The History
The Judgement of Paris in 1976 brought Californian wines to the international stage. For a thoroughly enjoyable, charming movie depicting this event, Bottle Shock, currently free on Tubi and Pluto TV is an absolute watch for even the average consumer of wine.
Wine consumption in the United States exploded during this timeframe but there are so many wines to choose from whether domestic or international and the learning curve is steep so the average consumer had no idea what or how to buy. Enter Robert Parker of the Wine Advocate. Parker is without question the most influential person in the domestic wine industry over the last half-century and probably one of the top two or three on the international scene. Even today the smallest winery in Slovenia has to be conscious of his opinion.
Parker tried to simplify the decision-making process on wine purchases via his monthly newsletter in the late 1970s, and early 80’s with the introduction of a 100-point rating system.
Ratings Today
Most wines rated for a consumer are on a scale of 50 -100 with anything 79 or below considered average or flawed. Consumer studies are demonstrating that rankings below 90 or 91 points discourage a potential buyer from purchasing so now virtually any wine possessing a ranking below that is better off not advertising its rating. Making matters even more confusing there are dozens of professional, legitimate, serious organizations rating wine such as: Wine Advocate, Wine Enthusiast, Wine Spectator, Decantor, Antonio Galloni, Jeb Dunnuck, James Suckling, etc…
There are countless more organizations that rate wine and again, all named are professional and serious. They and their panels taste more wine in a week than we taste in a year. How does that help us?
What is important to note is that each rating organization has tendencies. Some prefer bold wines, others prefer wines that are more subtle. And the actual ranking of wine does not directly correlate to whether it is delicious. Most are rated based on “production quality” and “typicity”. Typicity is an interesting term. In wine ratings it has to do with rating a wine through various parameters based on wines produced within that region. As an example, the rating organization is comparing a wine in Chianti based on other wines produced in the Chianti region or a Malbec produced in Mendoza compared to another Malbec within the same region. So a 93 Point Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley in France and a 95 Point Chenin Blanc from New York State are NOT equivalent. So when you are in a major grocery store or national retail wine distributor and they indicate this was a 91-point wine from one of the rating organizations listed above, the best it can do for you is maybe narrow your decision process. But if you encounter this, don’t run away, but realize that you are probably not in a better position on what wine you want to select before you came in the store. A non-rated wine may be incrementally better tasting than that 93-point wine advertised and likely at a better price.
The Exceptions
You will on occasion see advertised a 97, 98 or even a 99 point wine across many rating organizations. Will even the average wine consumer notice the difference between that wine and a 91 point wine? Probably yes. In those instances your nose and taste buds will identify more primary and secondary aromas, the finish (the taste after you have sipped) will be longer and even more aromas will surface. Ten, twenty seconds later the subtlety of the wine will resurface and I have seen people react almost in a startled fashion when that occurs. This is a highly-rated wine that you will likely remember. The problem is that in the vast majority of cases, these wines cost in excess of $300.00 a bottle and are out of most of our budgets. Yes, they are the extremely “special occasion wines” but are just not going to be a part of our regular wine consumption.
My Services
Through my group tasting classes or one-on-one conversations, we can sort through and identify what wines you might like at the price points you are comfortable with. Thereafter you do not need to waste money on a wine recommended by someone solely reliant on points.+
