14/05/2026
What is wine for?
For Robert Parker, pleasure. For Jancis Robinson, balance, purity, precision. For Hugh Johnson, story. For Antonio Galloni, development. For Dan Keeling, sharing the moment.
Eight critics. Eight palates. Eight answers to the same question.
That divergence is not a failure of criticism. It is the most useful thing about it. Knowing what question a critic asks is the first step to knowing what question you want answered.
Amelia Singer on critics as shortcuts not verdicts, Tim Hayward on what criticism owes the reader, and Rory Sutherland on why understanding a wine and experiencing it cannot be separated.
Reviewed by Jancis Robinson MW and William Kelley.
One question underneath all of it:
How do you build your taste without outsourcing your judgment?
Full piece at ourglass.wine. Link in bio.
