Robert Parker, the world’s pre-eminent wine guru according to many buyers, have recently published a new edition of his main book: ‘Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide No. 7’ (yes, it’s the seventh edition). In this new edition it is not only Parker who writes. He has enlisted a team of co-writers for the comments and tasting notes. Parker himself writes about Bordeaux, California and the Rhône Valley.
The rest of the book is shared thus: : Neal Martin – New Zealand & South America; Mark Squires – Portugal & Israel; Antonio Galloni – Italy; Jay Miller – Australia, Chile, Argentina, Spain, Oregon, Washington & Port wine; David Schildknecht – Alsace, Beaujolais, Burgundy, the Loire Valley, Languedoc-Roussillon, Austria, Germany & Central Europe.
In other words, Parker is behind only a minority of the text in the book. One can wonder if this “dilution” of Parker’s own writing will have an effect over time on the influence that the Parker Guides have on the international wine market.
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