Comments on The Gray Report: On the 100-point scale, uncertainty and types of c...

The 100-point scale evaluation does have a lot of ...

2012-01-18T21:55:10.965-08:00

The 100-point scale evaluation does have a lot of problem.
However,it is a good quick reference for
some luxury products that you cannot try before purchase.For many customers it would be absolutely impossible to what cabernet to choose out of 100s or even 1000s of similar products.
What matters here is that customers should know it is just another one man's point of view,and

That is indeed the question! It really feeds into ...

2012-01-16T10:20:40.162-08:00

That is indeed the question! It really feeds into my larger musing over the business model of wine blogs. Do the blogs themselves need to have a business model or do they function primarily as brand builders to help the writer in other enterprises? In either case, how does a narrow universe of readers aid that? Or maybe it's just the universe of commenters that's small?

I ask

Chelsea: You're a savvy reader, so you'll ...

2012-01-16T09:48:18.580-08:00

Chelsea: You're a savvy reader, so you'll get this.

Who consumes this blog: Consumers of wine, or consumers of wine blogs?

I read and enjoyed a lot of wine blogs as a consum...

2012-01-16T08:23:45.630-08:00

I read and enjoyed a lot of wine blogs as a consumer, but the debate on this topic is very, very inside baseball. And, if the purpose of the blogs is to be a forum for communication among those in the industry, then fine. But I can't help but wonder: Is it really reasonable to expect even a very interested wine consumer to spend hours, days and months researching regions, makers, importers,

Blake, definitely honest enough for me, and I appr...

2012-01-14T21:17:17.046-08:00

Blake, definitely honest enough for me, and I appreciate the honesty regarding branding/marketing. Now it makes more sense why someone would use it, even if it isn't flawless. Still don't know how I feel about it overall, but I do appreciate the little dropping of knowledge that I didn't have before.

Jay: Thank you for coming here and saying that. I&...

2012-01-14T21:07:29.425-08:00

Jay: Thank you for coming here and saying that. I've basically been saying those things about the Wine Advocate for years but it's nice to see someone associated with the publication say them.

You can tell where I stand on the concept of scoring wines. It's more information, and I'd always rather have more information. If people don't like it, they can just ignore

It's the old precision vs. accuracy dart board...

2012-01-13T21:28:11.599-08:00

It's the old precision vs. accuracy dart board picture. My perception is reviewers can be accurate if they are consistent over time. Most are, even when they have preferences that are rather specific. Parker doesn't love Sine Qua Non one day then wake up the next craving a Chinon, at least as far as I can tell. He accurately assess the wines he likes.

Precision is where the

Hello Blake The Wine Advocate would quickly go out...

2012-01-13T16:35:40.897-08:00

Hello Blake
The Wine Advocate would quickly go out of business simply by deleting the scores. Although I think my former colleagues generally write excellent tasting notes and Robert Park on the front page of every issue emphasizes that they are more important than the number, readers want a shorthand. The Wine Advocate has a lengthy track record of making solid recommendations (if it did

Kyle: I use the scale because it's the most wi...

2012-01-13T07:03:27.439-08:00

Kyle: I use the scale because it's the most widely understood rating system. But not only that.

A few years ago I did an article for that scale, and in the course of researching it I came up with a point which is now widely agreed on but not many (if anyone) had written about at the time: the Wine Advocate, in particular, uses high ratings on the 100 point scale as a competitive

Describing wine, in my opinion, is to explain in o...

2012-01-13T01:48:31.013-08:00

Describing wine, in my opinion, is to explain in objective terms subjective variables. What are the aromas of this wine? How does it taste like? Is it balanced? I feel the rating scale is an effective tool to achieve that. The consumers are not stupid and take that grades with a grain of salt.

Robert, if you prefer, I can retype it with typica...

2012-01-12T21:27:19.221-08:00

Robert, if you prefer, I can retype it with typical wine reviewer adjectives like "sweet red fruits, a distinct earthiness reminiscent of walking through the forest after a light fall rain."
To be honest, I don't even read tasting notes that often, unless it's someone I know and trust (which doesn't include any professional reviewers, although plenty of professionals).

Kyle, Bleedyblee and biggidyboop? You kiss your ...

2012-01-12T20:59:21.133-08:00

Kyle,

Bleedyblee and biggidyboop? You kiss your mom with that mouth? (Grey I thought that this was a high-brow blog.)
Overall the 100 point scale is familiar and works. Now the descriptors of the wine in the journals and magazine? Some of those descriptors I have never tasted or that many for that matter. I also do not think that many consumers will recognize the flavors or

BTW, I didn't mean to imply that's the rea...

2012-01-12T20:37:01.060-08:00

BTW, I didn't mean to imply that's the reason I think YOU use the scale, just that I've heard other people say that in the past. I would like to know why you chose that scale, however.

I don't understand why you people ("What ...

2012-01-12T20:27:26.069-08:00

I don't understand why you people ("What do you mean you people?") are so obsessed with using the 100 point system if you admit that there are faults with it and that people don't understand it the way you want them to. Why deal with all that drama? Why not just post tasting notes, and give your overall impression "this wine smelled of blah, tasted of blah blah blah and

Doug: Wow, is that true? You bought roughly 50 of ...

2012-01-12T20:15:02.854-08:00

Doug: Wow, is that true? You bought roughly 50 of the Spectator's top 100 and disliked most? Wow.

I wish I could say how many of the Spectator's top 100 I like in any given year, but I've never taken notes. Probably few of the Pinots; I have a different opinion of what good Pinot Noir tastes like. But I think I would like the majority of their top 100, because even when

I agree that the hundred-point scale is basically ...

2012-01-12T18:40:50.202-08:00

I agree that the hundred-point scale is basically for people who don't know much or don't care to know much about wine. They just want some certainty, and the scale provides it. It made me think of my start into wine a couple of years ago. I was actually foolish enough to go out and buy half of the WS Top 100 thinking those wines were the best of that year! I ended up liking very few of

David: That's a pretty good analogy, actually....

2012-01-12T16:50:34.204-08:00

David: That's a pretty good analogy, actually. I absolutely hate American travel writing because it offers no perspective -- it's as if every article is a snapshot. But you do learn something from a travel article, as you do from a snapshot, as you do from a wine rating.

I don't hate point scales. Personally, I am i...

2012-01-12T15:11:11.330-08:00

I don't hate point scales. Personally, I am indifferent to them as I only buy wines I have tasted. But, living in Northern California, surrounded by good wines easily tasted, I know that isn't the case for most wine drinkers.

If I think about them, I think they are misleading. Not only are they the subjective opinion of one person's palate on a specific day, but they are

Tobias: The world of wine has changed since Peynau...

2012-01-12T12:07:04.763-08:00

Tobias: The world of wine has changed since Peynaud's day. What he called "undrinkable" was generally due to spoilage, which rarely happens now. Even "OK" wines might have been affected by spoilage.

Now, in a twist I find interesting, "undrinkable" is most often leveled at very ripe wines that are sought after by certain portions of the market.
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I prefer the WSET scale: Faulted Acceptable Good ...

2012-01-12T12:05:18.852-08:00

I prefer the WSET scale:

Faulted
Acceptable
Good
Very Good
Outstanding

Some use + or – for each level to add more detail. Each level is supported with the wines attributes such as complexity, intensity, structure, balance and finish in many combinations. The system is taught with strictly blind tasting so you get good at accessing quality.

I prefer to view myself not as a 100pt scale-hater...

2012-01-12T11:48:51.752-08:00

I prefer to view myself not as a 100pt scale-hater, nor certainly a scale-lover, but as an utter indifferent. Of course any enthusiast may chronicle a wine impression as they wish with love or zeal, but when a wine-percentile is relayed to me I react with a shrug but just can't shake the possibility that the scorer is insensitive/oblivious to bottle variation and the vast other factors that