Wine Spectator’s "Award of Excellence" reality check

I try to write about positive things in this forum and tend to stay away from negative topics when possible. But when I ran across an article about how someone created a fictional restaurant to be considered for Wine Spectator’s Award of Excellence and it was given the award, I had to write about it. Wine Spectator is one of the US leading publications about wine and the wine industry. Also, they are used as a good reference for fine dinning restaurants that have exceptional wine lists by awarding them an Award of Excellence. I have often wondered what it took for restaurants to get these awards. I guess I just assumed there were a group of people that traveled around the world eating at these establishments and reviewing the food and wine they served. Apparently that is not the case. An author by the name of Robin Goldstein (The Wine Trials) decided to create a fictional Italian restaurant named Osteria L’Intrepido and see if he could get the prestigious award. He did this as part of a research paper about standards of wine awards. He submitted a cover letter, a made up menu, a fake wine list, and the $250 entry fee for consideration. He also obtained a Milan, Italy phone/fax number, created a web site for the restaurant and posted a couple of restaurant reviews on Chowhound.

The main wine list that Mr. Goldstein submitted was a perfectly decent selection from around Italy that met the magazine’s basic criteria (about 250 wines, including whites, reds, and sparkling wines–some of which scored well in Wine Spectator). However, Osteria L’Intrepido’s high-priced “Reserve Wine List” was largely chosen from among some of the lowest-scoring Italian wines in Wine Spectator over the past few decades. Even with the low scoring “Reserve list”, Osteria L’Intrepido won the Award of Excellence. Osteria L’Intrepido was notified by the magazine on May 22nd that they were being awarded the honor, but along with the notification was an invite to place and advertisement (costing between $3,090 and $8,860) with the magazine in the August issue. That is the issue where the restaurants are announced as award winners. According to Mr. Goldstein, that was the only message left on the answering machine for the imaginary restaurant. Wine Spectator claims that their staff called the restaurant multiple times, but according to Mr. Goldstein, the only message left on the machine was from the ad department. Also the only other contact from Wine Spectator was an email from the ad department reiterating the opportunity to advertise in the August issue.

Apparently, the magazine didn’t do any more research on this restaurant as anyone else who has an internet connection. They didn’t scrutinize the wine list even though it was created by using wines they had previously given poor ratings. There were wines on the list that Wine Spectator had described as "smelling of bug spray" and as having "Just too much paint thinner and nail varnish character." Also, they didn’t seem to make any attempt to actually investigate the restaurant. They were just happy to get their entry fee and an opportunity to sell ad space. I am extremely disappointed to hear this about one of the industry trendsetters. I tend to look for restaurants that have accolades for their wine list and wine service. I trusted that those awards were for actual “Excellence” not just for payment. Osteria L’Intrepido might be the first fictional restaurant to win a prestigious award, but I am sure it is not the first restaurant to get this award even if the wine cellar is sub standard. Restaurants, like all businesses, have strong incentives to embellish their images. Who really knows if they have all the wines they say they have? So we turn to experts and awards bodies to help navigate the chaotic world of information and misinformation that results. But if we can’t trust the results of these “so called” experts, then what good are the critics and their seemingly bogus awards? I realize that Wine Spectator is a for profit business and their pay-to-play programs are a revenue generator for them. But I would still expect a certain level of investigation on their part. So take the “Award of Excellence” how you like, but I know I won’t look at it the same.