Archive for the 'Critics/Competitions' Category

In the recent comments on our 100-point scale for rating wines, we’ve received a number of questions concerning the use of “typicity” to award points. I guess the theory goes something like, “If a wine is typical of its variety/region, it should receive extra points.” To which I call, “Bullsh*t.”

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One of the things the editors talked about at our just-completed editorial conference was rating wines. We even tasted a few pairs of wines to help illuminate (lubricate) the discussion. In the first pairing, we blind-tasted two wines from the same producer–one the estate wine, one the second wine. Essentially, this was a test of whether we could pick out the “better” wine.

Perhaps a more precise way of phrasing the question would be whether our critics agreed with the winery’s judgement of which was the better wine. In the end, we almost unanimously did. Why? Because even though wine rating is undeniably subjective, most critics–and winemakers–are examining the same traits of each wine.

Although each of our reviewers is free to use their own rubric, we stress the importance of evaluating balance, length, intensity and complexity as the basis for our ratings. For myself, I tend to model my scoring approach after that of Robert Parker, Jr., whose writings played a major role in my early wine education.

Appearance is not a major factor, unless it is somehow suspect (hazy) or atypical (browning in a young white) for the type and age of wine being judged; most wines receive 4 or 5 points for appropriate appearance.

Aroma is the next facet of the wine that I judge, based on balance, intensity and complexity. Balance suggests a harmony of scents, with no single overbearing component. Intensity can be a double-edged sword: superintense but unpleasurable aromas rate lower than low-intensity unpleasurable ones. Complexity mostly refers to the number of different scents detected, subject to the requirement of balance, and on rare occasions refers to the indescribability of the overall bouquet. Aromas typically account for up to 10 points of a wine’s score.

Flavors are up next, and for obvious reasons are very closely associated with a wine’s aromas. Generally, I evaluate flavors along the same lines (balance, intensity, complexity) as aromas, and wines that score well for their aromas often perform well in flavor as well. That said, certain wines are more or less intensely flavored than aromatically endowed, and some wines’ flavors don’t gracefully reflect their aromas. Length of finish is an important quality indicator, although with the same caveat as intensity: No one wants a long finish if it tastes of paint remover. Overall, flavor accounts for up to 15 points of a wine’s rating.

While the wine is on the palate, I also examine the wine’s weight and texture, or what we call mouthfeel. Although this is primarily a function of the wine’s alcohol, sugar, tannin and acid levels, it may also reflect the wine’s concentration and other components. It should be appropriately balanced with the rest of the wine’s elements; I award up to 10 points for mouthfeel.

That leaves up to 10 points I assign based on a wine’s perceived overall quality and ability to improve over time. And this–in addition to the other areas where they may not receive full marks–is where most of the world’s rosés come up short on my scorecard, as virtually none are capable of improving with age (maybe Lopez de Heredia’s Rioja Rosado, if you like the style). For similar reasons, I will probably not find many Beaujolais nearing that mystical 100-point barrier, nor several other styles of wine.

That doesn’t mean that these wines aren’t capable of excellence; many are, and make for wonderful drinking. It just means that they are subject to certain limitations imposed on them by my scoring rubric. Should they be?

How we taste Wine Enthusiast is a hot topic with many angles. One healthy debate I’ve had with numerous friends and acquaintances is whether we, tasting blind and essentially in a void (well, stark, controlled tasting room environment anyway), are really doing a service to consumers. Most wine drinkers enjoy wine in a completely different way, namely with food, in varied settings, with wafting restaurant smells surrounding them and outside stimulus galore coloring–and they believe–enhancing, their wine experience.

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After “What’s your favorite wine?” the next most commonly asked questions I receive center around tasting wine: “How do you do it?” being the most popular. I suppose with all of the recent furor on the blogs over the disclosure that reviewers for Robert M. Parker’s The Wine Advocate rarely taste blind, this level of interest is understandable.

Although we regularly publish a box that covers “About the Buying Guide,” provide submitters with an FAQ and have done a video interview with The Wall Street Journal that covers the most salient points, questions still persist. So, in the spirit of full disclosure, here’s “How we do it.”

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Around two years ago, when I first traveled to Australia, I was struck by the number of winemakers asking my opinions regarding Robert Parker. Not the famous mystery writer–whose books never seem long enough to last me through an entire trip–the other one, who has made a 30-year career out of dispensing vinous advice to consumers.

On the one hand, I was a little taken aback. Although most folks brought up the topic diplomatically enough (”We’re not trying to make a huge, Parkerized style…” followed later by “So what do you think of his tastes, anyway?”), it was still somewhat disconcerting, being asked to comment on another critic’s critiques and preferences.

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You think cooking is a cute job, eh? Like Mommy in the kitchen? Well, Mommy never had to face the dinner rush while the orders come flooding in . . . every second counts and you cannot be mommy. –Colette, Ratatouille (2007)

A lot has been written about sexism in the wine and food (specifically restaurant) industry; we tackled the topic ourselves in our October 2008 “Bottle of the Sexes” issue. It came up again for me last November in Philadelphia as I sat on a “Breaking Through the Cork Ceiling” panel discussion with influential women of the wine industry like Martine Saunier and Cristina Mariani-May.  The good news in the wine world at least? Most of us agreed that if you’re smart, hardworking, and take what you do seriously, you’ll get ahead, regardless of the occasional old-boy boneheads who scowl at you when you crash their Victorian frat parties.

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When you’re sitting back after a long day, trying to relax and unwind with a nice glass of wine or a cold brew, do you ever stop and wonder how amazing the beverage in your hand is?  I mean, what a wonder that someone eons and eons ago actually thought of a way to combine water with other solid materials (grapes, wheat, barley, etc) to make a sublime libation that tasted so good as well as held various mystical and magical properties (as in make me stop thinking so much and take a deep breath for a change).  I often stop and mentally say thank you to that person, and more importantly the winemaker or brewer of the specific drink I am enjoying at that exact moment.

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I’m trying to swell the ranks of those who love the differences in each vintage, who abhor homogenization, who want wines that make them smile, think, laugh, and feel sexy. –Alice Feiring

Can you “feel” a wine? 

I have often tried to explain my own approach to professional tasting—I’m clinical, I’m systematic—I have to be. Imagine the overwhelming task of categorizing so many sensations without some type of consistent process. So I first deconstruct what’s in the glass without emotion—striving to create a sober map of its parts. But a skeleton needs blood and flesh to become human. 

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The Internet has led to a great democratization of wine reviewing. No longer do consumers need to rely on just a few published critics for advice on what wines to buy or when to drink wines that they already own. Not only are there hundreds of wine bloggers offering buying advice, but bulletin-board and forum software, found at such sites as Brad Harrington’s West Coast Wine Network and The Auswine Forum, allow thousands of users to publish their own tasting notes. Web sites like Cellartracker and Snooth let users track their wine collections and review wines. The next generation of the Wine Enthusiast wine-ratings database will allow users to compare their impressions with those of our expert tasters, and share their own wine reviews with the world.

Given the enormous proliferation of wine tasting notes available on the Internet, will the public continue to support professional wine critics? Should they?

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One of the criticisms New Yorkers often hear is that we’re not supportive enough of our local wine industry. With so many top-flight restaurants in Manhattan, how come more of them don’t showcase New York wines? Yes, many will have one or two, but good luck finding the New York section of the wine list. For a while, The New York Wine and Grape Foundation even produced cards for consumers to leave behind at their favorite restaurants imploring the sommeliers to offer more New York wines.

Lately, even wine critics have come under attack by an industry that seems determined to put the blame everywhere else but on itself. Jim Trezise, the head of The New York Wine and Grape Foundation, wrote this spring in an e-mail newsletter, “Where are the 90s?” He went on to comment about Wine Spectator and ourselves here at Wine Enthusiast, “”While the tasters at these publications are certainly qualified, their ratings simply do not match the opinions of panels of expert judges who sample the wines blind at wine competitions. Why the gap? I don’t know, but it’s not new.”

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