I know the title of this is likely to get your attention and I am posting it for a specific reason. You see, this is about a wine that I have never formally rated yet another retailer claims that I did.
But before I get to that story I want to discuss how the power of ratings and reviews of wine have become part of our culture of consumerism and the importance of the consumer being vigilant in verification of information
There have been many instances where retailers will use "Shelf Talkers" on the displays of wine that don't neccessarily pertain to the wine being sold. This is a problem for the consumer if the information mentions a particular critic gave the 2004 vintage of the wine a "93" and the wine on the shelf is actually the dusty 2000 vintage that got "88" instead. Generally the less an establishment knows about the wine they sell, the more you will see shelf talkers used.
Last December, Jane Black wrote an article for the Washington Post entitled Score One for Buyers Who Notice. In the article the author cites a survey the paper's Food section conducted in the Washinton, DC, Maryland and Virginia area. The random survey looked at 10 shelf talkers at each of ten reputable wine shops. The results indicated a full 25% of the information used to sell the wine being offered was erroneous. One shop mentioned in the article was advertising the 90 point review on a 2004 vintage when actually the 2005 on the shelf had received a gloomy 81 point review. In another instance a salesperson told a customer that "the wine was all the same" when she read the store-posted review for a 91 point 2005 Tuscan wine from Parker, only to find the 2006 on the shelf.
Many shops apparently work hard to keep the information they use as point of sale correct and current but due to constantly changing inventory and depending on manually having to police the hundreds of new scores most claim that it is an ongoing problem to keep this information accurate.
Vinfolio keeps a constantly growing database of wines and their ratings available free of charge to our users. Our CEO, Steve Bachmann blogged about this The use (and abuse) of wine ratings by retailers. One of his main points is that Tranparency builds trust. Selective use of only one score or worse yet disecting out only the "96" in a barrel tasting review of "94-96" is less than honest yet I see examples of it all the time.
Over the past couple years I have seen a growing phenomenon of Vinfolio scores being used to sell wine either on the secondary auction market or sometimes distributors or other retailers. One only needs to look at the Wine Commune auction site to see several people selling the 2005 Auteur Pinot Noir Shea Vineyard advertising them as VF100 or mentioning that it was our Winery of the Year. This is an indication that we have transcended the traditional retail model and are now viewed more as a quasi critic/market influencer. We take that responsibility very seriously.
So that brings me to my story.
The other day I received an email through the Mark Squires Bulletin Board on eRobertParker.com from someone who reads my blog as well as The Wilder Side of California. He explained he had received an email offering from The Carolina Wine Company offering a wine with a 98 point Doug Wilder score. He was reluctant to accept the information at face value because he went through my blog and issues of WSC searching for my review. I would have been pleased to tell him to buy as much as he could except the retailer's claim that I had rated the wine, 2004 Dyer Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain was materially false. I have tasted the wine and will be doing a formal review of it in the future. I sent the store an email pointing out the mistake and requesting they inform the customers who bought the wine (apparently sold out) that the score was "erroneous" The next day I received a followup email from the same reader telling me Carolina Wine Company also attributed a Vinfolio rating of 98 points to the 2002 Dyer Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain, a wine that I reviewed in 2006 with a VF 92. Seemingly this wine sold out as well.
In reflection what we try to do everyday is honestly assess wines we bring to market and put this information in the hands of our clients so they may make informed decisions. We recommend the use of Vinfolio's VinCellar or the archive of Wilder Side of California or FreeRunJuice postings if you ever wish to verify what you see posted elsewhere is in fact an "authentic Vinfolio review.