At the high scoring end, the 2007 Clos du Mont-Olivet, Rhône Red Blend Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Cuvée du Papet received an average score of 96 points and at $65 is 38% of the average cost of a similar scoring Southern Rhône which rates it a “Great Value”.

 At a value index of 35%, the 2007 Chasseur, Pinot Noir Russian River Valley Freestone Station scored 94 points and cost $61 which is 35% of the average $174 cost of similar scoring West Coast Pinot Noir earning it a “Great Value” moniker.

 At the low price of $12, the 2007 Durigutti, Malbec Mendoza received an average score of 90 points and is 48% of the average $25 cost of a similar scoring Argentine Malbec earning it a “Great Value” moniker.  Another low price point value wine is the 2007 Quinta do Crasto, Port Douro that scored 88 points and cost $16 which is 31% of the average $51 cost of a similar scoring Port wine.

 A total of 821 wines are profiled in this issue.

Yes, I do think wine is a living creature, part art, part science, and it evolves over time. But I also believe some wines are better than others, and I believe professional wine critic scores are a valuable short cut to determine what is good and what is great.

Scores help the wine consumer to both narrow and widen their choice of wines. If a consumer wants to try a new varietal, German Riesling as an example, then you want the consumer to try the best German Riesling within their budget and that is what WineBlueBook does. We take the score and compare to the street price to show the best values along with the so-so values and terrible ones too.

When a consumer is staring at 100+ wines in the supermarket wine aisle and has two minutes to choose a wine, a numerical score is a great aid. Much better than choosing the cutest label, cheapest price or recognizable name. Comparing the wine score and price and choosing the best value is what most people want. When you ask someone “What wine do you recommend for x” you are essentially saying “What wine do you recommend for x that is the best value for my money.”

The majority of the wine buying public doesn’t have the time, nor passion, to read/research/drink and discuss every wine before buying. The wine enthusiast spends their time reading/researching and drinking wine yet use similar short cuts when deciding what movie to see. Most don’t bother to read/research and discuss directors/actors when deciding what movie to go see. They rely on a “thumbs up/thumbs down” or rottentomatoes.com (a similar model to WineBlueBook but for movies).

Yes, they could trust a wine retailer, but is a wine retailer going to recommend a wine they don’t sell? Or are they tempted to sell one wine over another because they make more commission or are spiffed in other ways for recommending one region, or producer over another? It happens.

And if I trust the recommendation of a retailer, why can’t I trust the recommendation of a professional wine critic?

I am not advocating blindly buying cases of wine without first trying the wine. I recommend you take the score, price and WineBlueBook’s quality index (measures the average score to price ratio) into consideration then buy a bottle that fits your budget, try it and if you like it, buy more.

WineBlueBook takes an average of two or more professional critics. A wine must be scored by two or more professional wine critics before it is published. This ensures a score is not swayed, one way or another, by one critic.

If you are in the minority who make wine apart of your everyday life, then yes, trust your palate. But don’t criticize others who are not wine enthusiasts and choose to use wine scores in deciding which wine to purchase.

50% of new subscription revenue received before January 31, 2010 will be donated to Partners in Health (http://www.standwithhaiti.org/haiti).

Visit http://www.winebluebook.com/subscribe.html to subscribe.

I admit it… I do a terrible job of explaining WineBlueBook.  I should have picked up the Veuve Clicquot and Piper Heidsieck and said “both of these wines received 89 points, but the Piper is $17 cheaper.”  Then I should have put down the bottle of Piper and picked up the bottle of Charles Heidsieck and said “both of these wines cost $37, but the Charles received 91 points vs only 89 for Vueve.  That is what WineBlueBook does, it lists wines by score and price and shows you the values.”  Next time.

We did a comparison between March 2006 and December 2009 prices and found the following:

The Dec 2009 ‘price per score’ for wines lowered across the board for all scores except the high scoring 96 and 97 point wines.

At the high scoring end, the 2004 Greenock Creek, Shiraz Barossa Valley Alice’s received an average score of 97 points and at $65 is 35% of the average cost of a similar scoring Australian Shiraz, earning it a Great Value moniker.

At the low price point of $12, the 2005 Thorn-Clarke, Shiraz Barossa Valley Terra Barossa received an average score of 90 and is 46% of the average $26 cost of a similar scoring Australian Shiraz, a Great Value.

A total of 1,702 Australian Shiraz wines are profiled in this issue.

We did a comparison between August 2006 and November 2009 prices and found the following:

West Coast Syrah Average Price Per Score

The Nov 2009 ‘price per score’ for wines remained relatively the same except for the high scoring 93-94 point range which lowered substantially.

At the high scoring end, the 2007 Tensley, Syrah Santa Barbara Colson Canyon Vineyard received an average score of 95 points and at $35 is 33% of the average cost of a similar scoring West Coast Syrah, earning it a Great Value moniker.  The 2007 Jaffurs, Syrah Santa Barbara Bien Nacido Vineyard also received an average score of 95 and at $40 is 37% of the average $107 cost of a similar scoring West Coast Syrah.

At the value end, at $9, the 2005 Cycles Gladiator, Syrah Central Coast received an average score of 87 and is 35% of the average $26 cost of a similar scoring West Coast Syrah, a Great Value.

A total of 2,389 West Coast Syrah wines are profiled in this issue.

Reading from the top line, the average price for an 86 rated French Champagne was $31 back in December 2006 and increased $7 more to$38 in November 2009.

The Champagnes used in developing the “average price per score” sample base are 1996-2005 and NV Champagne wines that have been scored by two or more professional wine critics (tracked by WineBlueBook).

At the high scoring end, the 2006 Hundred Acre, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Kayli Morgan Vineyard received an average score of 97 points and at $260 it is 43% of the average cost of a similar scoring West Coast Cabernet Sauvignon.

At an amazing value index of 13%, the 2008 Domaine William Fevre, White Burgundy Chablis Valmur scored 95 points and cost $70 which is 13% of the average $555 cost of similar scoring White Burgundy earning it an “Outstanding Value” moniker.

At the low price of $13, the 2007 Domaine Andre Brunel, Rhône Red Blend Côtes du Rhône Villages Cuvée Sabrine received an average score of 91 points which is 29% of the average $45 cost of a similar scoring Southern Rhone earning it a “Great Value” moniker. Another low price point value wine is the 2006 Château Ste. Michelle, Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley Indian Wells that scored 88 points and cost $14 which is 31% of the average $45 cost of similar scoring West Coast Cabernet Sauvignon.

A total of 1,640 wines are profiled in this issue.

It is simple.  We know you will be satisfied with your subscription, but if for some reason you aren’t (within 60 days), we will give you your money back.  That is a good amount of time for a test drive, don’t you think?

The wines covered are as follows:
418 West Coast Pinot Noir are profiled. 21 Great Values.
260 White Burgundy wines are profiled. 33 Great Values, 3 Outstanding Values.
200 Champagne are profiled. 11 Great Values.
131 Southern Rhône are profiled. 14 Great Values.
124 West Coast Cabernet Sauvignon are profiled. 31 Great Values, 1 Outstanding Value.
119 West Coast Syrah are profiled. 5 Great Values, 1 Outstanding Value.
74 German Riesling are profiled. No Great Values.
69 Piedmont Reds are profiled. 1 Great Value.
48 West Coast Chardonnay are profiled. 2 Great Values.
47 Tuscan Sangiovese are profiled. 8 Great Values.
36 West Coast Merlot are profiled. 3 Great Values.
34 Argentine Malbec are profiled. No Great Values.
27 Red Burgundy are profiled. No Great Values.
23 Sauvignon Blanc are profiled. No Great Values.
17 Australian Shiraz are profiled. 3 are Great Values.
13 West Coast Zinfandel are profiled. 1 Great Value.

Details can be viewed here.