The TORBWine Rating System

                 Sydney Time

           Copyright © Ric Einstein 2009

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Firstly readers need to understand that I profoundly dislike for all numerical based rating systems, believing that assigning an objective score to a relative assessment, unless in a show situation is folly.

I am a very hard marker, much harder and more critical than any other wine critic because wine quality is in the shape of pyramid. There is loads of dross at the bottom, half way up there are much fewer wines, and at the very top a miniscule amount. Wine doesn’t get 50 points for just showing up on the TORB system, if its crap or flawed that’s the way it will be rated.

Cats piss (not devoted to NZ Sauvignon Blanc.)

Barely Drinkable (probably flawed or just plain very ordinary)

Acceptable (ho hum wine)

Agreeable (ok, well and truly drinkable)

Recommended (good quality wines)

Highly Recommended (faultless high quality wines)

Excellent (benchmark wines)

Outstanding (few and far between)

The Ultimate (almost as rare as rocking horse dung)

The TORB Wine Value System

* Bad news – wines with delusions of value

** Normally not worth buying unless its very high quality special occasion wine.

*** Beauty is in the eye of the beholder; line ball industry average value for money.

**** The extra good value drops that we all search out.

***** Like hens teeth, the bargain of the year category.