Hey everyone. First day here. Looking to subscribe to wine spectator or jeb dunnuck. Does anyone have subscriptions to them and which one in your opinion would be a better read. I have decanter and wine enthusiast on Apple News but I want the wine ratings and more in depth articles at my fingertips.
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Better results from Vinous
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Are you primarily in it for the scores/ratings or the articles? Iāve found that WS articles are pretty good, but the scores/ratings vary from reviewer to reviewer in terms of aligning with my taste. In general, Iāve found JD scores to be a bit inflated (but not Suckling level inflated), and I donāt have experience with his articles. But in general, Iād say find the critics whose palettes align best with yours.
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Iām in for both the ratings and the articles. I typically drink and collect Bordeaux and Napa wines. I really like Molesworth and find his tasting fair. I like that he does them all blind at WS and to my current knowledge has never given a 100 point score.
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Thank you, Iāll check it out.
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I would add a āsecondā to the Vinous recommendation.
But, between WS and Jeb, I personally would go with Jeb (and, I have a subscription).
Wine Advocate (Robert Parker) is also a great resource as well if you have not checked that out.
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Although Jeb Dunnuck now reviews Bordeaux and Napa wines, he started out as an enthusiast of Southern Rhone wines. Thereās nothing to say that one canāt do all of those regions, but there might be critics who have years more experience with Bordeaux and Napa. You need to figure out if you prefer traditional or modern styles or are ambidextrous and find a critic who will speak to your tastes. There are other publications that have critics with one or the other.
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I would also give the nod to Vinousā¦Over the years, WS has gradually devolved into a āLifestyle Magazine.ā Articles tend to be superficial and vacuous. I donāt regard āscoresā, so theyāre probably a wash. I do turn to Wine Advocate more and moreā¦primarily due to William Kelley.
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First, welcome to the madhouse.
Second, of the general purpose sites (as opposed, say, to Burghound), I would recommend Vinous (given my preferences, for Neal Martin) and Parker (for frequent visitor/contributor here William Kelly)
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Jeb gets my vote.
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Recent lawsuit accuses Molesworth of changing scores after learning the label. Wine Spectator hit with transgender discrimination lawsuit
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Agree with your assessment of WS. Last month they did a big blowout on a new Napa resort where rooms start at well over $1,000 a night, but I donāt think they disclosed that in the article. I recently started a subscription to WS, but will be looking for something more focused on wine.
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One web I would certainly check out if I were you would be Jeff Leveās The Wine Cellar Insider.
Not only is it free (although I do contribute, but donations are an option) but the wine reviews and the articles on the different Chateaus in Bordeaux are superb. Moreover, I find Jeff is a very eclectic wine critic who will appreciate āgoodnessā in a wine regardless of its style. Or ābadnessā, of course.
My personal opinion is that The Wine Advocate has been somehow erratic over the past few years.
Jeb Dunnuck is good too, but I donāt think he is as eclectic as Jeff. He has a certain bias towards āboldā wines and you must always take that into account when you read his reviews.
I also check out Wine Enthusiast because their tastings are blind (single blind, though) and that gives them a certain āsomethingā that few or none of the big names have.
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To the OP, it depends on how you like your wines. If you like modern, ripe fruit, big oak, big abv, Jeb! may be your man. If you like restrained oak, lower abv, and less international polish, then likely not. Jeff Leve has similar taste as Jeb! Both modeled themselves and their tastes after Parker.
Vinousā tiered system of subscriptions, offering ābespokeā subscriptions to those ITB is disqualifying to me.
WS uses wine to sell other stuff and isnāt a serious wine publication.
TWA has Kelley, which is good. Joe C likes modern Napa Cabernet and RhĆ“ne, which arenāt to my taste. I subscribe to TWA because of Kelley. As I no longer buy much (if any) wine other than Champagne, Iāll see how the new Champagne guy, Yohan Castaing, does before renewing. I like Kelley for Champagne. Jury is out in Castaing.
John Gilmanās View from the Cellar is my favorite publication to read, even about wines that I no longer buy. Along with Kelley, John is the best writer. If John likes a wine, I likely will, too. If he doesnāt, I likely wonāt, too.
Find a writer or multi-writer publication that generally share your tastes in wine. Most will send you a sample to check out.
Finally, it doesnāt matter what I think or anyone else thinks: find a writer who speaks to your palate.
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Welcome David. The only thing I can add is that I am discontinuing WS when this subscription runs out, and I have been with them since the late 80ās. It has turned into more of a lifestyle mag (I have some old ones I kept and they were really good back in the day though imho).
Good Luck
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Wine Advocate is my go to. Vinous not bad. I enjoy Jancis but I find lots of gaps in wine reviews
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Other than Mosel Fine Wines, Wine Advocate and Vinous are my favorites and they are both great for Napa and Bordeaux.
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How am I the first to recommend the finest publication of all, Wine Berserkers. Iāve found more good stuff here in an average month than in years of publications.
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If we are talking just about a bake off between those two publications I would go with Jeb. I donāt always agree with his palate, the scores are a little inflated, but at least I get a sense of where he is coming from, and that to me is more important than the score itself.
My big problem with, say, Suckling is not that he is always 97 points on that - itās that I have absolutely no idea where that score is coming from. Oh yes, lots of prose / word salad, none of which really reveals anything. Whereas with @William_Kelley I get, in extremely economical prose, a very clear idea of what the wine is and why he rates it where he does. I love Jancis for her dialing everything down a notch and for her ability to distill the essence of a vintage in a paragraph ā even if that leaves a lot out. And @Jeff_Leve for inadvertently telling me a lot about how weird my palate is ā it sometimes aligns with his perfectly, and sometimes itās like āhow can you think that?ā But again in all cases I get a sense of why he is reacting the way he is.
I would agree WS is turning into CondƩ Nast 1%er FOMO bullish!t.
Can I try to persuade you not to give a crap about scores? And welcome to the monkey house.
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I broke up with WS like in 1999. It had turned into Conde Naste way back then, and Suckling was a joke. The answer always is, anything but WS. Jeb is a good dude. If your palate aligns with his, go for it. Heās a serious critic, WS is a joke. Iād recommend you consider TWA since WK took over. Heās outstanding - speaks to context, history, agronomy, et al. I do not think any critic is at his level. Heās NextGen. John Gillman is the palate that I most closely align with, and heās a precise writer. I like that.
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