Wine Spectator

Wine Spectator is an American magazine specializing in wine, founded in 1976. It evaluates tens of thousands of wines each year through blind tastings and has established the widely used 100-point rating system, giving it considerable influence over the wine market. It is currently owned by M. Shanken Communications and headquartered in New York.

1. History

• Founding: It was first published in 1976 by Bob Morrisey in San Diego, California, as a tabloid newspaper.

• Acquisition and growth: After Marvin R. Shanken acquired it in 1979, it became a biweekly magazine and subsequently expanded into a specialist publication covering wines from around the world.

• Present day: It is now established as one of the world's most widely read wine magazines and also operates an online platform and a large-scale wine event, Wine Experience.

2. Scoring System Wine Spectator assigns scores ranging from 50 to 100, with each range carrying the following meaning.

• 95–100 points (Classic): A great wine of exceptional quality.

• 90–94 points (Outstanding): A wine of superior character and style.

• 85–89 points (Very good): A wine of excellent quality.

• 80–84 points (Good): A well-made wine without flaws.

• 75–79 points (Mediocre): A drinkable wine that may have minor flaws.

• 50–74 points (Not recommended): A wine that is not recommended.

3. Top 100 Wines list Since 1988, it has selected and announced at the end of each year the 100 most impressive wines tasted during that year. The selection criteria are as follows.

• Quality: Wines must have an official score of 90 points or higher.

• Value: Price competitiveness relative to the score is considered.

• Availability: A sufficient quantity must be available for consumers to purchase in the market, based on production or import volume.

• X-Factor: This refers to the topicality and elements of interest that the editors perceive in the particular vintage or producer.

4. Business and activities

• New York Wine Experience: A large-scale tasting and seminar event held annually in New York.

• Scholarship Foundation: Since 1982, it has raised more than $30 million to support wine and food education programs.

• Expertise: Specialist editors are assigned to conduct tastings by region, and most official tastings are performed blind to maintain objectivity.