The Wine Advocate
Encyclopedia
The Wine Advocate, informally abbreviated TWA or WA, is a U.S.
bimonthly wine
publication featuring the consumer advice of wine critic
Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Initially titled The Baltimore-Washington Wine Advocate the first issue was published in 1978. Accepting no advertising, the newsletter publishes in excess of 7,500 reviews per year, utilizing Parker's rating system that employs a 50-100 point quality scale (Parker Points®). These wine ratings may have a significant effect on the economic performance of the reviewed wine.
while in college studying law
. In the 1970s, Parker was influenced by the activist consumerism
philosophy of Ralph Nader
and saw in the wine industry a lack of independent wine criticism that was not sponsored by the distributors or wineries being reviewed. He released his first edition of The Baltimore-Washington Wine Advocate in 1978, originally as a complimentary
bi-monthly feature. It soon changed to a subscription periodical
and by 1984 was successful enough that Parker could quit practicing law full time and focus on wine reviews.
Parker and The Wine Advocate first garnered international, mainstream attention for his early prediction of the superiority and quality of the 1982 vintage
of Bordeaux wine
. Parker's enthusiastic endorsement created a spike of interest from American wine buyers in purchasing wine futures of this vintage, prior to its release to the public. This had the effect of raising the price dramatically for 1982 Bordeaux wines. Subscriptions to The Wine Advocate continued to grow and by 1998 had over 45,000 subscribers in 35 different countries.
and California
, with he remaining regions are divided between Neal Martin who covers New Zealand
and South America, Mark Squires on Portugal
and Israel
, Antonio Galloni
on Italy
, Dr. Jay Miller on Australia
, Chile
, Argentina
, Spain
, Oregon
, Washington
and Port wine
s, and David Schildknecht
on Alsace
, Beaujolais
, Burgundy
, Champagne, the Loire, Languedoc-Roussillon
, Austria
and Germany
.
In January 2011, Parker restructured the coverage as he announced he would himself no longer cover California wines but rather devote himself to older vintage reports for California, while retaining the coverage of Bordeaux and the Rhône Valley. The restructuring left Antonio Galloni to cover Italy, Champagne, Chablis
, Côte d'Or
and California, David Schildknecht to cover Germany, Loire, Beaujolais, Mâconnais, Eastern U.S., Austria, Eastern Europe, Languedoc-Roussillon and Jura
, Jay Miller to cover Oregon, Washington, South America and Spain, Lisa Perrotti-Brown to cover Australia and New Zealand, and assigned to Neal Martin the role of Critic-at-Large to overlap all areas while specifically covering South Africa
, and for Mark Squires to publish "occasional articles on Israel, Portugal, and Greece
".
Throughout various wine regions, most notably Bordeaux
, The Wine Advocate early vintage evaluation-sampled while the wine is still in oak barrels-can have a dramatic effect on the eventual prices of all the region's wine upon their release. Individual scores of wine can also affect whether or not distributors or retailers will order the wine to sell with some retailers refusing to order wine rated below 85 points.
noted that Parker and The Wine Advocate were "...in danger of controlling the international fine wine market." The subject of scoring wines in the manner of The Wine Advocate has also been criticized by wine writers, such as Hugh Johnson, who has stated that wine tasting
and evaluation are intrinsically subjective, with the wine having the potential to dramatically change and evolve over time. In partial response to these criticisms, The Wine Advocate publishes on the cover of every issues its philosophy that "...wine is no different from any consumer product. There are specific standards of quality that full time wine professionals recognize".
The effects of The Wine Advocate scores can be pronounced in the retail sphere, with wine rated above 90 points usually selling well while those even in the 85-89 range, which is rated "good to very good", will often be ignored by consumers.
that they had paid about $25,000 for Miller's air travel, hotel accommodations and meals for a two-week trip. The Wall Street Journal article credited Dr. Vino
with breaking the story.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
bimonthly wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
publication featuring the consumer advice of wine critic
Critic
A critic is anyone who expresses a value judgement. Informally, criticism is a common aspect of all human expression and need not necessarily imply skilled or accurate expressions of judgement. Critical judgements, good or bad, may be positive , negative , or balanced...
Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. is a leading U.S. wine critic with an international influence. His wine ratings on a 100-point scale and his newsletter The Wine Advocate, with his particular stylistic preferences and notetaking vocabulary, have become very influential in American wine buying and are...
Initially titled The Baltimore-Washington Wine Advocate the first issue was published in 1978. Accepting no advertising, the newsletter publishes in excess of 7,500 reviews per year, utilizing Parker's rating system that employs a 50-100 point quality scale (Parker Points®). These wine ratings may have a significant effect on the economic performance of the reviewed wine.
Background and history
Robert Parker first developed an interest in wine on a trip to FranceFrench wine
French wine is produced in several regions throughout France, in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year, or 7–8 billion bottles. France has the world's second-largest total vineyard area, behind Spain, and is in the position of being the world's largest wine producer...
while in college studying law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
. In the 1970s, Parker was influenced by the activist consumerism
Consumerism
Consumerism is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and fostering of a desire to purchase goods and services in ever greater amounts. The term is often associated with criticisms of consumption starting with Thorstein Veblen...
philosophy of Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader is an American political activist, as well as an author, lecturer, and attorney. Areas of particular concern to Nader include consumer protection, humanitarianism, environmentalism, and democratic government....
and saw in the wine industry a lack of independent wine criticism that was not sponsored by the distributors or wineries being reviewed. He released his first edition of The Baltimore-Washington Wine Advocate in 1978, originally as a complimentary
Complimentary
Complimentary may refer to:*Compliment *Free of charge...
bi-monthly feature. It soon changed to a subscription periodical
Subscription business model
The subscription business model is a business model where a customer must pay a subscription price to have access to the product/service. The model was pioneered by magazines and newspapers, but is now used by many businesses and websites....
and by 1984 was successful enough that Parker could quit practicing law full time and focus on wine reviews.
Parker and The Wine Advocate first garnered international, mainstream attention for his early prediction of the superiority and quality of the 1982 vintage
Vintage
Vintage, in wine-making, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product . A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certain wines, it can denote quality, as in Port wine, where Port houses make and...
of Bordeaux wine
Bordeaux wine
A Bordeaux wine is any wine produced in the Bordeaux region of France. Average vintages produce over 700 million bottles of Bordeaux wine, ranging from large quantities of everyday table wine, to some of the most expensive and prestigious wines in the world...
. Parker's enthusiastic endorsement created a spike of interest from American wine buyers in purchasing wine futures of this vintage, prior to its release to the public. This had the effect of raising the price dramatically for 1982 Bordeaux wines. Subscriptions to The Wine Advocate continued to grow and by 1998 had over 45,000 subscribers in 35 different countries.
Critics staff
In September 2006, Parker delegated most of the world's wine regions to a team of critics, retaining for himself Bordeaux, the Rhône Valley, ProvenceProvence wine
Provence wine comes from the French wine-producing region of Provence in southeast France. The Romans called the area nostra provincia , giving the region its name...
and California
California wine
California wine has a long and continuing history, and in the late twentieth century became recognized as producing some of the world's finest wine. While wine is made in all fifty U.S. states, up to 90% of American wine is produced in the state...
, with he remaining regions are divided between Neal Martin who covers New Zealand
New Zealand wine
New Zealand wine is largely produced in ten major wine growing regions spanning latitudes 36° to 45° South and extending . They are, from north to south Northland, Auckland, Waikato/Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Wellington, Nelson, Marlborough, Canterbury/Waipara and Central...
and South America, Mark Squires on Portugal
Portuguese wine
Portuguese wine is the result of traditions introduced to the region by ancient civilizations, such as the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, and mostly the Romans. Portugal started to export its wines to Rome during the Roman Empire. Modern exports developed with trade to England after the...
and Israel
Israeli wine
Israeli wine is produced by hundreds of wineries, ranging in size from small boutique enterprises to large companies producing over ten million bottles per year. Wine has been produced in the Land of Israel since biblical times. In 2009, Israeli wine exports totaled over $22 million...
, Antonio Galloni
Antonio Galloni
Antonio Galloni is an American wine critic, and a member of The Wine Advocate tasting staff, the publication of Robert Parker.In 2004 Galloni began publication of the Piedmont Report newsletter profiling the wine of Piedmont. In 2006, he joined The Wine Advocate as a reviewer of Italian wine, and...
on Italy
Italian wine
Italian wine is wine produced in Italy, a country which is home to some of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world. Italy is the world's largest wine producer, responsible for approximately one-fifth of world wine production in 2005. Italian wine is exported largely around the world and has...
, Dr. Jay Miller on Australia
Australian wine
The Australian Wine Industry is the fourth largest exporter of wine around the world, with 760 million litres a year to a large international export market and contributes $5.5 billion per annum to the nation's economy...
, Chile
Chilean wine
Chilean wine is wine made in the South American country of Chile. The region has a long viticultural history for a New World wine region dating to the 16th century when the Spanish conquistadors brought Vitis vinifera vines with them as they colonized the region. In the mid-19th century, French...
, Argentina
Argentine wine
The Argentine wine industry is the fifth largest producer of wine in the world. Argentine wine, as with some aspects of Argentine cuisine, has its roots in Spain...
, Spain
Spanish wine
Spanish wines are wines produced in the southwestern European country of Spain. Located on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain has over 2.9 million acres planted—making it the most widely planted wine producing nation but it is the third largest producer of wine in the world, the largest...
, Oregon
Oregon wine
The state of Oregon in the United States has established an international reputation for its production of wine. Oregon has several different growing regions within the state's borders which are well-suited to the cultivation of grapes; additional regions straddle the border between Oregon and the...
, Washington
Washington Wine
Washington wine is wine produced from grape varieties grown in the U.S. state of Washington. Washington ranks second in the United States in the production of wine, behind only California. By 2006, the state had over of vineyards, a harvest of of grapes, and exports going to over 40 countries...
and Port wine
Port wine
Port wine is a Portuguese fortified wine produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the northern provinces of Portugal. It is typically a sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine, and comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties...
s, and David Schildknecht
David Schildknecht
David Schildknecht is an American wine critic, a full time member of The Wine Advocate tasting team since 2006, and contributor to recent editions of Robert Parker's Wine Buyer’s Guide. An authority on the wine of Germany and Austria, he also considers the Loire Valley a specialty, a wine region he...
on Alsace
Alsace wine
Alsace wine or Alsatian wine is produced in the Alsace region in France and is primarily white. These wines, which for historical reasons have a strong Germanic influence, are produced under three different Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées : Alsace AOC for white, rosé and red wines, Alsace Grand...
, Beaujolais
Beaujolais
Beaujolais is a French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée wine generally made of the Gamay grape which has a thin skin and is low in tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not labeled varietally. Whites from the region, which make up only 1% of its production, are made mostly with Chardonnay grapes...
, Burgundy
Burgundy wine
Burgundy wine is wine made in the Burgundy region in eastern France, in the valleys and slopes west of the Saône River, a tributary of the Rhône. The most famous wines produced here - those commonly referred to as "Burgundies" - are red wines made from Pinot Noir grapes or white wines made from...
, Champagne, the Loire, Languedoc-Roussillon
Languedoc-Roussillon
Languedoc-Roussillon is one of the 27 regions of France. It comprises five departments, and borders the other French regions of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne, Midi-Pyrénées on the one side, and Spain, Andorra and the Mediterranean sea on the other side.-Geography:The region is...
, Austria
Austrian wine
Austrian wines are mostly dry white wines with some luscious dessert wines made around the Neusiedler See. About 30% of the wines are red, made from Blaufränkisch , Pinot Noir and locally bred varieties such as Zweigelt...
and Germany
German wine
German wine is primarily produced in the west of Germany, along the river Rhine and its tributaries, with the oldest plantations going back to the Roman era. Approximately 60 percent of the German wine production is situated in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, where 6 of the 13 regions ...
.
In January 2011, Parker restructured the coverage as he announced he would himself no longer cover California wines but rather devote himself to older vintage reports for California, while retaining the coverage of Bordeaux and the Rhône Valley. The restructuring left Antonio Galloni to cover Italy, Champagne, Chablis
Chablis wine
The Chablis region is the northernmost wine district of the Burgundy region in France. The grapevines around the town of Chablis are almost all Chardonnay, making a dry white wine renowned for the purity of its aroma and taste. The northern location along the 48th parallel north places Chablis at...
, Côte d'Or
Côte d'Or (escarpment)
The Côte d'Or is a limestone escarpment in Burgundy, France that lends its name to the department which was formed around it...
and California, David Schildknecht to cover Germany, Loire, Beaujolais, Mâconnais, Eastern U.S., Austria, Eastern Europe, Languedoc-Roussillon and Jura
Jura wine
Jura wine, is French wine produced in the Jura département. Located between Burgundy and Switzerland, this cool climate wine region produces wines with some similarity to Burgundy and Swiss wine. Jura wines are distinctive and unusual wines, the most famous being vin jaune, which is made by a...
, Jay Miller to cover Oregon, Washington, South America and Spain, Lisa Perrotti-Brown to cover Australia and New Zealand, and assigned to Neal Martin the role of Critic-at-Large to overlap all areas while specifically covering South Africa
South African wine
South African wine has a history dating back to 1659, and at one time Constantia was considered one of the greatest wines in the world. Access to international markets has unleashed a burst of new energy and new investment. Production is concentrated around Cape Town, with major vineyard and...
, and for Mark Squires to publish "occasional articles on Israel, Portugal, and Greece
Greek wine
Greece is one of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world. The earliest evidence of Greek wine has been dated to 6,500 years ago where wine was produced on a household or communal basis. In ancient times, as trade in wine became extensive, it was transported from end to end of the...
".
Influence on the wine industry
While not the first American wine publication, nor the first to use a numerical wine ratings scale, The Wine Advocate was the first to widely adopt the 50-100 scale and use it as parallel to the American educational grading system. This system was familiar to his original target audience of the average American consumer and provided a guideline for quantifying a wine quality in a standardize format. Retailers have used The Wine Advocate's "Parker scores" to aggressively market wines with high scores. The scores have also become focal points for collectors and wine spectators (investors) who purchase highly rated wines in the hopes that the Parker scores will increase the value of the wine.Throughout various wine regions, most notably Bordeaux
Bordeaux wine regions
The wine regions of Bordeaux are the area around the city of Bordeaux within the Gironde department of Aquitaine. The region is naturally divided by the Gironde River into a Left Bank area which includes the Médoc and the subregions of St-Estèphe, Pauillac, St.-Julien, and Margaux and a Right Bank...
, The Wine Advocate early vintage evaluation-sampled while the wine is still in oak barrels-can have a dramatic effect on the eventual prices of all the region's wine upon their release. Individual scores of wine can also affect whether or not distributors or retailers will order the wine to sell with some retailers refusing to order wine rated below 85 points.
Wine Advocate Fund
The Wine Advocate also operates The Wine Advocate Fund For Philanthropy, a non-profit organization that raises money primarily for cancer research. In 2008 the Fund hosted a $10,000 per plate charity dinner where the publication's 100-rated wines were served. In 2006 a similar dinner raised $1.3 million.Criticisms
The influence of The Wine Advocate on the demand and commercial interest of wine has met with some criticism, with wineries being accused of making wines tailored to Parker's tastes. In the late 1980s, wine expert Jancis RobinsonJancis Robinson
Jancis Mary Robinson OBE, MW is a British wine critic, journalist and editor of wine literature. She currently writes a weekly column for the Financial Times, and writes for her website jancisrobinson.com...
noted that Parker and The Wine Advocate were "...in danger of controlling the international fine wine market." The subject of scoring wines in the manner of The Wine Advocate has also been criticized by wine writers, such as Hugh Johnson, who has stated that wine tasting
Wine tasting
Wine tasting is the sensory examination and evaluation of wine. While the practice of wine tasting is as ancient as its production, a more formalized methodology has slowly become established from the 14th century onwards...
and evaluation are intrinsically subjective, with the wine having the potential to dramatically change and evolve over time. In partial response to these criticisms, The Wine Advocate publishes on the cover of every issues its philosophy that "...wine is no different from any consumer product. There are specific standards of quality that full time wine professionals recognize".
The effects of The Wine Advocate scores can be pronounced in the retail sphere, with wine rated above 90 points usually selling well while those even in the 85-89 range, which is rated "good to very good", will often be ignored by consumers.
Comped Travel Controversy
Robert Parker has written that “it is imperative for a wine critic to pay his own way. Gratuitous hospitality in the form of airline tickets, hotel rooms, guest houses, etc., should never be accepted either abroad or in this country.” In 2008 two of his contributing critics, Jay Miller and Mark Squires, were found to have accepted trips paid for by producers' associations or state-sponsored bodies. Wine Australia told The Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
that they had paid about $25,000 for Miller's air travel, hotel accommodations and meals for a two-week trip. The Wall Street Journal article credited Dr. Vino
Tyler Colman
Tyler Colman, writing under the pen name Dr. Vino, is an American author with a PhD in political science from Northwestern University, and wine educator with the New York University and the University of Chicago, and publisher of one of the internet's most highly rated wine blogs, which won the...
with breaking the story.
External links
- The Wine Advocate info erobertparker.com