It’s Friday afternoon and you really want a bottle of wine to enjoy that night with dinner. You go into your local wine shop / supermarket / gun and wine shop (!) and peruse the shelves . . .but how to decide what to buy?
All of a sudden, you start noticing ‘beacons’ drawing you over to certain bottles – emblems noting that this specific wine won a gold medal at some wine competition; a shelf talker noting that this wine scored 92 points by Joe Bob Wine Reviewer. As you step back, you start to notice that a LOT of wines have some sort of rating or award noted . . .are they ALL that good?!?!?
The Wall Street Journal had an article last week about two ‘scientific studies’ conducted by Robert Hodgson, a retired statistic professor (Here is the link to the article – http://tinyurl.com/ykob5ye).
He analyzed awards given out at large wine competitions and noted the following – judges were very inconsistent; wines were scored erratically from competition to competition. And one of my favorite lines from the article, after Mr. Hodgson had set up a graph of wines entered in numerous competitions and noting how they scored among the different ones – The distribution of medals, he wrote, “mirrors what might be expected should a gold medal be awarded by chance alone.”
Are you surprised? In all honesty, I am not, and here are a few reasons why:
Wine Competitions often times have hundreds of wines entered that are tasted over a very short period of time, making it difficult to truly ‘rate’ each one individually by the judges.
Wines are ‘reviewed’ at a specific place and time – and one’s taste buds and sense of smell will be altered throughout the day by what they come into contact with – scents, food consumed, etc.
Wine judges at these competitions are, above all, HUMAN, and we are far from perfect ‘machines’ that are capable of reproducible results again and again and again.
The concept of ‘objective’ wine reviews’ is an oxymoron – every judge therefore will see a wine quite differently, and the concept that the same wine will be perceived as ‘best’ from judge to judge and competition to competition is unrealistic.
What’s the take home message here? To me, it’s not that you should talk these ‘medals’ with a grain of salt, because they are somewhat indicative that a certain group of people, whom your palates may align with, felt that this particular wine was better than its competition that day.
It’s that you should feel empowered to ‘challenge’ these medals, just as you should ‘challenge’ wine ratings from even the most respected reviewers. Why? At the end of the day, no one shares your taste buds, your sense of smell – and therefore you will always perceive wine in an individualistic manner.
Just something to think about this morning. Let me know your thoughts as well.
Cheers!
Sep
14
I read an interesting blog last week chronicling a reader’s dislike of wine clubs in general. We’re not talking your run-of-the-mill ‘Wine of the Month’ type club here (and not that I have anything against that club or others like it in particular).
He was talking about a number of wineries’ individual wine clubs, and his disappointment stemmed from his experiences as follows:
* Many of the clubs seemed to be using the club to sell off wines that do not sell well elsewhere.
* Many of the clubs sell wine to their club members are prices that are somewhat higher than can be found in the retail market.
* Many of the clubs ‘bundle’ their wines, requiring you to purchase a number of different wines in order to get the ones you really want.
I was absolutely blown away to hear this, as my experiences with individual winery wine clubs has generally been quite positive. I’ve never felt ‘taken advantage of’ by receiving ‘second rate’ products AND I’ve always felt that the prices I received were lower than could be found elsewhere. In addition, I found that these clubs are a way to ensure access to difficult-to-find wines as well.
I have experienced this last point, though, and those wineries that have continued to practice this bundling have lost my business, as well as others I know.
I’ve tried to learn from this in putting together my own wine club. Though it’s a bit difficult to organize, I’ve tried to make my club as ‘open’ as possible and allow pretty much any kind of substitution you’d like . . .
For instance, my first shipment in the Spring consisted of 2 bottles of our 2008 rose, 2 bottles of our 2008 The Outlier (Dry Gewurztraminer), and 2 bottles of our 2006 Cuvee Christie. I had a handful of club members who preferred all reds – no problem. I had a few that wanted all whites – no problem again. And I had a number that wanted to order a few extra bottles – no problem (and I covered the freight charges for these customers!).
I’m interested to hear your experiences with wine clubs – both those from individual wineries and those put together by retail stores or other third parties. I’ll be sending out our Fall Club shipment in the next few weeks and want to make sure we ‘do it right’ (-:
Thanks in advance for sharing!
Cheers!
Sep
8
Every winery, including me, should be appreciative that you are willing to spend your hard-earned money on our wines. Heck, no one NEEDS wine! (I’m ducking, awaiting the arrows coming out me from the rest of the industry!).
That said, it really blows my mind that many wineries simply charge too much for shipping – so much so that they actually LOOSE CUSTOMERS . . . NOT based on the quality of their wines or company BUT because people balk at paying the shipping charges . . .
I use a third party shipper to handle all of the shipments of my wines. The prices they charge me have increased about 25% over the past year due to increases in oil prices, supplies, etc., and I am okay with this. What I’m NOT okay with is increasing my prices to my customers . . . It’s just not good business in my opinion.
There are many different ways that wineries arrange to ship their wines out. Some have their own in-house fulfillment capabilities – they pick and pack their own orders, using their own packing materials, and arrange themselves for UPS, Golden State Overnight, Fed Ex, or other such companies to come by and pick up their orders. These companies are able to control costs well since they do not use a third party . . .and SHOULD offer very good shipping rates to their customers.
Some use third party shippers outside of their facility. These wineries either a) have to move their wines over to the fulfillment house or b) have the wines picked up by the fulfillment house. If b) is used, guess what – your costs will be higher . . . Once at the fulfillment house, the winery has handed the wines off and it’s up to the fulfillment house to pick, pack, and ship your order. Some of these houses, such as the one that I use, are VERY reasonable, and allow me to offer great rates to my customers . . .
Others are apparently NOT that reasonable (see some recent releases by ‘cult’ Napa producers, for instance) and charge the wineries an arm and a leg – meaning that YOU will pay and two arms and two legs! Is this fair? One possible justification of this is if the winery chooses to send all shipments out next or 2nd day air in order to ensure your wines arrive without the possibility of heat damage. In this case, kudos to the winery for being so concerned about the wines themselves . . . . BUT they should give YOU, the customer, the option to reduce your costs by shipping it in another manner . . .
Now I COULD get into wineries that use oversized bottles and the shipping cost implications of just THAT . . . But I’ll save that for another blog!
So what do you think? Would you choose NOT to purchase wines that you really want simply because freight charges are too high? Please share your thoughts here . . .
Cheers!
Sep
7
As a relatively new winery, I feel it is important for me to submit my wines to a select group of reviewers to get their feedback on my wines. Why? There are a few reasons I do this:
1) I am truly interested in their professional opinion about my wines – ‘they’ drink and review a lot more wines than I ever will . . .
2) Their reviews can only help me, as far as I’m concerned, in getting my wines known by more people in the ‘wine world’.
That said, the points that are associated with the reviews are certainly of interest to me, but they are not ‘end alls’. I am always amazed at the apparent disparity with the reviews of many wines, including mine, and the points that are awarded to them.
For instance, in the latest Wine Advocate, out 2006 Cuvee Christie GSM Blend had the following review:
The 2006 GSM Cuvee Christie, a blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre, reveals abundant aromas of cedar, spice, pepper, black cherries, and raspberries, a round, gracious texture, medium to full body, and a heady, pure finish with no hard edges. It is a seductive red to drink over the next 3-4 years.
I really enjoyed reading this review, for I think it captures the essence of the wine at this time, and is in line with what many who have tasted the wine at the various events I have poured at over the past 6 months.
At the bottom of the review are the ‘all important’ points . . .an 88. So does these points ‘match’ the review? I don’t know, but I’ve been told by a few who read it that they do not – that the points should have been higher . . .
I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this issue – and not just about a specific reviewer, but about reviews and points in general . . .
Cheers!
Sep
6
I frequent wine boards (kind of like frequenting wine bars, but just a tad ‘safer) and find all kinds of topics being discussed these days . . .and I like to add my $.02 where appropriate.
A few recent comments about a few wines by a very well known wine reviewer have created quite a stir on multiple boards, including his own. Here are the facts:
* This reviewer compared a high scoring Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir to a famous 1990 DRC . . .
* This reviewer also made the comment about a very high alcohol syrah that saw extended time in barrel : This is not for everybody (especially those incapable of thinking “outside the box”), but it is unquestionably an impeccably well-made example of a completely different stylistic spin on Syrah.
Personally, I do not take ‘offense’ or ‘question’ either of these statements . . . You know why? Because this is simply ONE PERSON’S VIEWPOINT! Just remember that the term ‘objective wine review’ is an oxymoron in and of itself – it is NOT possible to be completely objective about rating or writing about something as ‘subjective’ as wine.
You cannot have a ‘consumer reports’ – type publication dealing with wine because there are too many ‘subjective’ aspects that go into discussing and dissecting wines . . . Period.
I personally LOVE the second of his comments because I think it rings true for way too many wine drinkers, including those that consider themselves connoisseurs. The fact is, we all use generalizations or stereotypes in our every day lives, whether we choose to believe we do or not. So why would this be different when it comes to wine? It isn’t!
And if this reviewer feels that a wine compares favorably to a great wine that he or she has had in the past, do be it – your mileage may vary . . .and it probably will. And that’s okay . . . It’s kind of like a person who compares the aromas of a wine to ‘Grandma’s perfume’ or ‘a walk along the Sonoma coast’ . . . These are subjective takes that are REAL for the person reviewing . . . But may not resonate with you.
Just a little rambling this morning . . .
Would love to hear your take on these . . .
Cheers!
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Larry | 
02 4th, 2010| 
