The goal of this thread is to better understand a critic’s palate and how to interpret their wine tasting notes. These are related, but not the same, questions.
Instagram @joshraynoldswine [private but can request access]
[u]Abbreviated bio from: Vinous | Explore All Things Wine
Josh’s interest in wine was kindled in the early 1980s while he was at Boston University, pursuing an English degree that he received in 1985. The crash of 1987 put a merciful end to a short-lived stint in the financial world and he decided to make the plunge into the wine trade, beginning in retail in Washington, D.C. and spending the better part of 1989 and 1990 visiting and working in vineyards and cellars in France and Germany. In 1993 he moved to New York to work for a national importer, traveling across the country to represent the portfolio until 2005, when Steve Tanzer asked him to join the International Wine Cellar. [International Wine Cellar was later acquired by Vinous].
Regions covered: Rhône, Spain, Paso Robles, Oregon, Santa Lucia Highlands, Beaujolais, and Australia
There is no one and I mean NO ONE I have known about or met that knows as much about alcoholic beverages in general, ones he has consumed in specific and everything about the context in which he consumed them than Josh. If Rainman was a movie about a wine critic it would be about Josh (in the nicest way possible I mean). His retention of shit is insane. And, importantly I believe, he f-ing loves all of it. I mean there are wines he thinks are garbage and all but I mean he’s not just doing a job. He lives and breathes this stuff. He also has wicked taste and is really freaking smart.
Piling on. Josh does a tremendous job, in my opinion, of seeing the positives in a range of styles, and also knows where to draw the line very well.
He also authored my favorite tasting note for one of my wines, referring to the 2008 Matello Hommage as “the bastard child of Chambolle-Musigny and a Negroni”.
I’ve always liked his notes. His scores have always seemed inflated for me. Like needing to shave a consistent 3-5 pts off all of them. I just always found it difficult to triangulate his notes with tasting the wine and then referencing the score. Otherwise very useful.
I love Josh, but if he’s reading this, the annual March call for Oregon Pinot Noir (and other wines) is very, very early. We were wrapping up bottling 2019s the very day of the deadline this year. Wishing Josh could wait for all the 16-18 mo+ bottlings to be available….
Adding further to the bio, when he was in DC at retail, he worked at Pearson’s with David Schildknecht, which is where I got to know Josh. [What a wonderful place to buy wine in the late 1980s and early 1990s!!!] I have only seen him once since and this was a number of years ago when he worked for Rosenthal. It was hard to believe then that he was not a kid anymore. Great to see that he has done so well.
You know, he does a great job wine-wise, and I would trust his palate and judgement all over the world, but what I really want him around for is his encyclopedic whiskey knowledge. Holy shit, he knows EVERYTHING about non-scotch whiskey. He even made me buy some $12.50 bourbon that was dynamite (the liquor store guy was looking at me sideways…).
You also must mention his spot on recommendations for burgers, chicken and bbq joints in the US. His cardiologist must love him. Seriously, foodwise he has not ever steered me wrong.
-and he lurks here, so don’t praise him too much. He’ll stop ironing his shirts, skip haircuts or some other weird shit.
Just to pile on, super guy, singular wit, great palate, does tremendous bbq (some of us call him the Meat Fairy, though he prefers Meat Incubus) and just an incredible resource for restaurant recommendations, whether you want a great burger joint in Tulsa, or a sushi place here in NYC.
Josh is the only reason why I subscribe to Vinous… He’s been my go-to critic for 15 years. His write ups are precise and he doesn’t inflate. I think I’ve agreed with every critique he’s ever written.
In case any one is interested in tuning in - I am interviewing Josh Raynolds tonight for a Zoom series that I host. It is completely free – at 5pm PDT:
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