WineLovers Discussion Group

http://insidescoopsf.sfgate.com/blog/20 ... o-galloni/

Neither side exactly covering themselves with glory.

Time to cover my ears to protect them from the din of the Klapp-trap.

Damn. And right as I have a nice pile of grading to look forward to, I find out that the 100 point scale is proprietary information. How ever will I assign marks, now that Arpy's handing out lawsuits to those stealing his amazingly original scoring system?

Salil wrote:Damn. And right as I have a nice pile of grading to look forward to, I find out that the 100 point scale is proprietary information. How ever will I assign marks, now that Arpy's handing out lawsuits to those stealing his amazingly original scoring system?

Take a page out of the Nigel Tufnel book and grade out of 101-point scale, Salil!

Mark Lipton

It's quite a turn of events, even in the now long-running RP saga. I wonder if he even tried simply asking for the Sonoma notes from Galloni? I guess even ex-lawyers don't think that way.

Dale, that was hilarious! Thanks for sharing the link.

-Paul W.

Salil wrote:Damn. And right as I have a nice pile of grading to look forward to, I find out that the 100 point scale is proprietary information. How ever will I assign marks, now that Arpy's handing out lawsuits to those stealing his amazingly original scoring system?

Well...there is the RobertParker 100-pt scale. There is the WineSpectator 100-pt scale. There is the WineEnthusiast 100-pt scale.
There is the Connoisseur'sGuide 100-pt scale. If you look at the verbage/garbage/words associated w/ each scoring range, they are
all different. So...clearly... the various 100-pt scales are all vastly different. If Galloni was using his own 100-pt scale, he's fine.
If he was actually using Parker's 100-pt scale....he's in deep $hit.
Of course...the TomHill 100-pt scale is the only definitive one!!!
Tom

Tom,

Does Robert Parker have a patent on his 100-point scoring system? I seriously doubt it. If not, then anyone can use it.

-Paul W.

Paul Winalski wrote:Tom,
Does Robert Parker have a patent on his 100-point scoring system? I seriously doubt it. If not, then anyone can use it.
-Paul W.

I doubt it too, Paul. However, if AG puts on his WebSite the same words describing his 100-pt scale, then Parker
might come down hard.
Tom

Yes, I would think that, while Parker has no intellectual property rights to the methodology of his scoring system, he holds copyright over his detailed description of it. Were AG to quote that verbatim (or close to it), without permission, Parker would have every right to come down hard on him.

-Paul W.

Now to really complicate matters

Jono Beagle's hundred point scoring system.
0-29/100 not worth bothering with
30-49/100 good wine but I wouldn't buy a case
50-59/100 very good showing grape and terroir character
60-69/100 excellent example of a wine from this country/region/grape
70-85/100 one of the very best wines that the region has to offer.
86-100/100 [i] one of the very best wines you are ever likely to drink

Jono is a regular poster on the UK forum!

It's worth noting that Robert Parker's system is really a 50-100 point system. All wines start with 50 points, and then additional points are added based on scoring various characteristics of the wine. This lets the system line up with the percentage grading system used in most American elementary and high schools:

50-59 points = poor (grade E or F)
60-69 points = below average (grade D)
70-79 points = average (grade C)
80-89 points = above average (grade B)
90-99 points = outstanding (grade A)
100 points = perfect

The lowest point score that I recall ever being published in The Wine Advocate was 52, for a wine that Parker described as "the vinous equivalent of Liquid Plumber". I had the misfortune to taste that wine (California cabernet sauvignon shouldn't smell of stewed Brussels sprouts) and I agree with the review comment. If I ever get to meet Parker again, I want to ask him what he awarded the two points for. Maybe to allow low-end room for potentially even more ghastly wines?

One thing that I missed from the early days of The Wine Advocate was the colorful reviews of poor wines. In the early days, Parker had a limited budget to buy wines, and had to review whatever he could get his hands on locally. Nowadays he only publishes the reviews for the good stuff, due mainly to limited space in his magazine. But he had a fine and entertaining turn of phrase for describing awful wines.

-Paul W.

THE WINE ADVOCATE DROPS GALLONI LAWSUIT
16th April, 2013 by Lucy Shaw
Robert Parker’s influential bi-monthly publication The Wine Advocate has dropped its pending lawsuit against former critic Antonio Galloni.

Case closed: Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate has dropped his lawsuit against former contributor Antonio Galloni
Last month, the company announced it was to sue its former California critic Galloni for withholding tasting notes and for alleged fraud and defamation.

However, according to WineSearcher.com, the case against Galloni and his company All Grapes Media has been dropped.

Parker, a former lawyer, announced the development on The Wine Advocate’s bulletin board.

“We’re pleased to announce that The Wine Advocate and All Grapes Media have resolved all of our outstanding issues amicably and The Wine Advocate has withdrawn its lawsuit against Mr. Galloni and All Grapes Media,” Parker wrote.

Full story:
http://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2013/0 ... 2013-04-16

"amicably"

Yeah. Right.