Bellbrook graduation 2012
Fairfield Senior 2012 graduation
Kroger Aquatic Center opens
Home > Blogs > Uncorked > Archives > 2008 > October > 21 > Entry
Wine Spectator just can’t hide its arrogance even when it tries
One would think — one would think — that Wine Spectator magazine would have learned some humility from its August debacle when its “Restaurant Awards” got scammed by an author who concocted a fake restaurant in Italy — an imaginary restaurant which ended up snagging an award from the magazine for its wine list.
The incident exposed embarrassing weaknesses in Wine Spectator’s methodology. And let’s face it — despite the magazine’s vigorous defense of its actions, the incident turned the magazine’s misnamed “restaurant awards” into a laughingstock.
Now, fast-forward just two short months later.
The magazine is hard at work on its 2009 restaurant awards program, which, lo and behold, is now described more accurately the “Restaurant Wine List Awards,” according to a solicitation in its Nov. 15 issue. That’s a step in the right direction, if I’m reading it right.
But in that same two-page solicitation for restaurants to submit their application materials (and their $250 “processing fee”) by the Feb. 2 deadline, the magazine makes the following claim:
“No other wine list awards program carries such credibility …”
Wow.
Marvin and the boys must think they possess the same power as that pocket device in “Men In Black”: just snap their fingers, and we just forget everything. Two short months? No problem. Our instant amnesia device will take care of that. And when the Spectator proclaims it’s credibility is unmatched, well then, it must be so.
What chutzpah.
What unabashed arrogance.
TweetGo to my facebook page and click Like to comment.
Comments
By tish
November 12, 2008 8:38 AM | Link to this
Nice post, Mark. WIne SPectator is becoming more Ivory Towerish than ever, at a time when wine is becoming more mainstream. They are clinging to a sense of entitlement: “does anyone else do it as well?” What gets me chuckling is how WS keeps defending the program as an awards program at all; it is first and foremost a revenue center for WS, aand secondly marketing tool for participating (i.e., paying) restaurants. ANd you know what it is to consumers? A directory, pure and simple, of restaurants that have good wine lists.
By Seth
October 23, 2008 2:33 PM | Link to this
It is a pleasure to read a credible wine blog.
By Mark Fisher
October 22, 2008 3:41 PM | Link to this
Thomas: You are absolutely right — I’m not familiar with ANY other wine-list awards program, so I cannot name one that has “more credibility than Wine Spectator’s,” thus your magazine’s boast that, “No other wine list awards program carries such credibility …”, regardless of the fact the boast was made two months following the faux-restaurant debacle, is perfectly, completely accurate. Now — did the Spectator indeed rename the awards for 2009?
By Thomas Matthews
October 22, 2008 1:28 PM | Link to this
I wonder if Mr. Fisher or any readers of this blog can cite a wine list awards program that has more credibility than Wine Spectator’s. We’re not perfect — no one is. Michelin, for example, has published guides giving stars to restaurants that hadn’t opened yet. But we have been reviewing and honoring fine restaurant wine lists since 1981. Can any other publication or program say the same? Thomas Matthews Executive editor Wine Spectator
By larry schaffer
October 22, 2008 11:58 AM | Link to this
I may be missing something here, but does anyone else go to the time and effort to actually put together a list like they do? Seriously? I know that they are an easy target, but I for one feel they do the general public a nice service by putting together their list. Is it perfect? Heck no - and that’s been shown pretty clearly lately … But that said, it still is a good barometer for what a restaurant ‘generally’ has to offer - sometimes current / sometimes outdated … Just my $.02 … Cheers!
By Fi9Wi9
October 22, 2008 10:33 AM | Link to this
Bravo! It’s nice to see the industry is moving away from the WS and it’s advertising dollar based scores. Being in the business over 15 years has put me in many restaurants across the U.S. that have terrible wine lists yet boast a big plaque on the wall for a “Grand Award Winning Wine List.” I’ve actually seen a list that was sent in and the restaurant didn’t carry half of what they claimed was on their wine list. I was appalled and this was 11 years ago. I knew then that it was a sham. Trust your own palate not the WS, any other magazine or a retailer that only buys on ratings.
By Rick
October 22, 2008 3:26 AM | Link to this
Bashing W.S. is such a tired cliche. Get over it.
By Alvaro Covarrubias
October 21, 2008 11:10 PM | Link to this
And you still read that magazine? Wine Spectator can write what it wants; it’s the readers to blame for being so naive.
By Nancy
October 21, 2008 9:57 PM | Link to this
Why give them blog time? Believe me, they and America are watching. The more press they get for their tunnel-visioned coast approach to wine, and their fraudulent Wine Spectator Restaurant Award fiasco the better.
By Gene
October 21, 2008 5:40 PM | Link to this
Jim L is right on the money. Who cares about WS? Why bother giving them any blog time. They are a Micky Mouse Circus Side Show in the world of wine. WS is to wine magazines as Applebees is to restaurants - embarrassment!
By Jim L
October 21, 2008 4:30 PM | Link to this
Maybe its that East Coast mentality that governs the Spectator. “If you live west of the Hudson River you must be a country bumpkin and we are smarter and prettier than you will ever be wearing those Levi Overalls of yours.” The snob appeal is just to much for this country bumpkin. I could not tell you the last time I even opened a Spectator and I have spent over 40 years in the wine business and have dealt first hand with the captains of the California Wine Industry. I helped in the growth of the Mondavi’s, the Raymond’s, Sebastiani’s, and many other top Napa & Sonoma wineries. Not bad eh, for a country bumpkin from the Midwest. I am not impressed with the Spectator anymore, especially the high-handed, we are superior way they dealt with that Restaurant faux pas.
By Wine Person
October 21, 2008 2:22 PM | Link to this
Someday, when I no longer work in the wine industry, I would love to do the same thing with their wine ratings as was done with their “restaurant ratings.” I would decant a 100-point Wine Spectator rated wine into an inexpensive bottle with an inexpensive label and cork (and no “cult” winemaker name associated with it), and watch them give the wine an 80-point rating. Their wine ratings are a just as much of scam as well!
By Mike
October 21, 2008 10:17 AM | Link to this
Tasted any good wine lately?
By Hunter Johnson
October 21, 2008 9:42 AM | Link to this
Well, “such” just indicates an “extreme” degree (says my dictionary). Maybe they mean the other extreme…