Comments on: Schadenfreude All Over the Place

By: How to Get Six Pack Fast

How to Get Six Pack Fast — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:45:16 +0000

Not that I’m impressed a lot, but this is a lot more than I expected for when I found a link on Delicious telling that the info here is awesome. Thanks.

By: Best Wine Blog Posts for August 21st through September 8th | Winecast

Best Wine Blog Posts for August 21st through September 8th | Winecast — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 23:25:17 +0000

[...] Schadenfreude All Over the Place [...]

By: Chicago Pinot

Chicago Pinot — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 08:48:20 +0000

I wonder if this restaurant ever had in stock that famous but obscure wine the 1997 Chateau Whatever, which wine critic Craig Wolf of the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers Association reminided us about earlier this year.

“Most Americans were satisfied with the system as it is except for a small, very vocal segment who say they can’t get their bottle of 1997 Whatever.”

By: Thomas Pellechia

Thomas Pellechia — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 01:22:20 +0000

In my view, the whole thing once more points out the futility of horse racing a glass or bottle of wine.

What there is in the psyche that needs to hear of the best this or the top exceeds the confines of my feeble brain, which seeks only to find that which pleases me at the moment that I want to be pleased, and I don’t give a rat’s ass if what pleases me is supposed to or has pleased someone else somewhere else an or on someone’s wine list. But then, I’ve never felt the need for others to tell me where to look for things–it’s always been my choice to do my own explorations.

When you have a world of followers salivating, it’s so easy to make money on them, but also as easy to lose your grip and forget that you have created a scam that someone else is likely to scam.

If I seem incoherent on this matter, it’s because such crap makes me incoherent!

The last time I opened a WS I don’t even think restaurants had yet been invented…

By: Terry Hughes

Terry Hughes — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:29:52 +0000

The WS restaurant “award” has always seemed like a joke to me. Meaningless.

Benito, your point about the inevitability of being duped by outsourcing some key aspects of the work seems to be right on.

But the consumer who falls for these things is really pretty stupid. Caveat emptor.

By: Benito

Benito — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 20:55:35 +0000

I’ve got mixed feelings on this story.

For one, anyone relying on external correspondents and field reports is going to get duped at some point. It’s happened to the New York Times, to Oprah, and to National Geographic. It’s one thing when someone’s just trying to make money, but someone with a grudge or an agenda can fool the best of us.

On the other hand, Wine Spectator’s European Bureau Chief James Suckling lives in Tuscany; only a three hour drive from Milan, site of the fictitious restaurant. Would it have been too much trouble to e-mail James and ask for at least a friend’s review of the place?

On the gripping hand, to borrow and old sci-fi term, how much impact does this truly have? Will wine shops and wine lovers cancel subscriptions over this? Will wine drinkers stop paying attention to awards issued by WS and the shelf tags for individual wines? It’s only been a couple of years since I poured a wine and proudly proclaimed that “This was a gold medal winner at the 2004 San Bernardino County Fair Wine Festival!”