Archive for the ‘Rating Wine’ Category
Reading a series of book reviews by literary critics recently, it dawned on me that compared to wine critics, these literary pros and other types of professional critics have it tough, at least in terms of how much work they have to put in to completing their tasks. Put another way, it doesn’t take much time to produce a wine review. Wine critics out there, don’t get angry with me about this. Consider what must be done for a literary…
The first edition of Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book I ever picked up was the 1987 edition. Hugh had already been writing the annual guide for ten years. This year’s 2014 edition of the ubiquitous handbook is his 37th edition. For a number of years, the Hugh Johnson Pocket Wine Book was indispensable as a quick guide to the most important wineries (along with the author’s opinions of them), the basics of the world’s varied wine regions, reports on recent…
The wine was a 2006 Grenache from the Barossa Valley in Australia. It clocked in at 18.5% alcohol. It was carried to me by a good Aussie friend who purchased it in New York. The wine was absurd in every respect—in its size, in its lopsided nature and in its imposing heat. The alcoholic mask worn by this wine was complete in every way. What lurked underneath the heat was a blueish fruit. But it was hard to either notice…
Off the top of my head, I can’t think of any winemakers that moonlight as wine reviewers or critics. I may be forgetting someone, but even so, the list is surely very, very short if there is a list at all. I know a few critics/writers that have turned winemaker. But not the reverse. That’s why I was intrigued upon being directed to a new website being called, “Winemakers Recommend”. The concept is simple: videos of winemakers recommending wines they…
As he often does, wine scribe Joe Roberts wrote something relevant the other day. He explained that for those considering how they might make a name for themselves, for their writing and for their wine knowledge through publishing, this person should strongly consider SPECIALIZING. By this, Joe simply means it’s much easier to get the attention of potential readers if your authority and wine writing revolves around a specific subject within the wine niche, rather than trying to publish information…
