LAST WEEK, I received a brochure from a mail-order wine company that was new to me. All the wines that were on offer had a points-rating system attached to them.
Points rating for wines has been around in the United States for some time now. In most wine stores over there, it is common for every wine to have a rating attached to it, usually from either Robert Parker or the magazine Wine Spectator. This makes life easier for the consumer, but it means stores become standardised, and individuality counts for less.
In Britain, wines are more often accompanied by a quotation from one or other of the host of wine writers that we have here.
Which is the better system?
I have reservations about both. With a points system, there is a risk that the wine trade will produce particular wines because they appeal to those awarding the points. For instance, Robert Parker gives high marks to wines which are heavily extracted and fruit-driven. Realising this, winemakers like to make such wines: they receive high points and are greatly in demand. There are two side-effects.
First, prices rise rapidly because of high demand, and, second, there is a tendency for wines to taste the same. They have been manipulated to maximise commercial gain. As devotees of Play Your Cards Right know, points mean prizes.
In addition, can one person be an expert in all the wines of the world? While my taste in Bordeaux wines is different to that of Robert Parker, I respect his in-depth knowledge of the region. On the other hand, I have a low opinion of his Burgundy knowledge. Indeed, Robert Parker in Burgundy is no longer Robert Parker; someone else tastes Burgundies under his name: there is a stable of palates now on his payroll. Another thing that concerns me is that we are not told whether the wines are tasted blind or not. Are the tasters influenced by the label and reputation of the wine? It is not always clear.
The brochure that I received quotes points ratings from Robert Parker, the Wine Spectator, and, for some wines, “our experts”. There is no mention as to who the experts are; I imagine that they are the organisation’s buying team. How subjective can their rating be?
Another mail-order wine company has the habit of filling its literature with quotations about the vintage, the region, and the producer, but not about the wine it is selling. In addition, there are palates that I trust, and some that I do not. If, for example, Jancis Robinson recommends a wine, I will accept that it is a good wine. That does not necessarily mean that it is a wine that I will enjoy. At the end of the day, we are individuals, and it is better that we should drink what we like, and not what we are told we should like.
Very much tongue-in-cheek, then, I offer some wines I have enjoyed that should make great early-autumn drinking: Vin de Pays de l’Ardèche Gamay 2007 (£4.15, Marks & Spencer — try it chilled); Otra Vida Shiraz 2006, Mendoza, Argentina (£4.99, Majestic); and an Australian white, Tahbilk Marsanne 2006 (£9.99, Sainsbury’s). |
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