Wine Classification - There’s a New Sheriff in Town

Wine classification was complicated. You had to know what AVA, terroir, and varietal meant. You had to know the regions and their geography to know what the wine might taste like or what grape it might be. You had to know terms like DOCG, Grand Cru Classé, Reserva, and dozens of such acronyms if you needed a prayer to predict what the quality of wine might be like.

The French famously never mentioned the grape on the bottle. They just mentioned the region and how the châteaux were rated during the times of Emperor Napoleon; the great classification of 1855. The authority, the standard of standards. First growth from the same château and vineyard commanded an extra digit in the price. A château that produced an 1855 classified Grand Cru Classé and sold an approachable second growth for $200 sold wines made from the same vineyard and its first growth for $2,000.

You had to absorb details about soil types (clay, limestone, gravel), diurnal shift, mountain gaps, and onshore flows. After all this, what isSpätlese, Puttonyos, Prädikat? If you don’t get any of this, don’t worry. At least that’s what a guy called Robert Parker professed in the late 1970s.

He basically said, I’ll go around tasting thousands of wines for you and give each of them an objective single score. My score of 90+ means it’s excellent. My score in the 80–90 range suggests it’s decent. My score above 95 says it’s a must-have, can’t go wrong. And a score of 100 says, if you can afford it, it’s the best of the best in its class. Phew, thank God! Now people had a simple way to choose their wine at the local grocery or liquor store. This RP system, as it got to be known, became so easy and popular that several folks and agencies started creating their own scores. The Wine Enthusiast score, the Wine Advocate score, the James Suckling score, among dozens of others.

People flocked to wine. They did not need to know the grape, the region, the classification

from the 19th century, and complicated terms, as long as they knew it was 92 points and within their budget. If it’s good for Robert Parker, it’s good for me.Sounds great. And statistically, a good plan to ensure a higher chance of buying and serving a good wine. But what if your taste profile did not match that of Mr. Parker, or Mr. Suckling, or the tasters at Wine Enthusiast and Wine Advocate? You were left wanting even at 90+ points. Ugh!! Now what am I supposed to do?

Well, some 30–40 years later, some 2 weeks ago (it’s 2026 for reference), in a widely declining wine industry jaded by complexity and confusion, a familiar star emerged and said, wait, we have just the solution.

The Michelin Guide!!

A guide developed in the early 20th century to help travelers pick good restaurants and what is known by at least 80% of the world as the gold standard in rating restaurants. The folks at Michelin decided (I’m just speculating): Here is an opportunity. People come to our guide to pick the best restaurants for their celebration or for bragging rights, societal status. They know us. They trust us. We will rate vineyards and wines. Inspectors and taste testers will go to vineyards around the world, get the hospitality treatment, and then decide.

1 star – Pretty awesome.

2 stars – Freaking awesome.

3 stars – Open your wallets, your minds, your taste buds, and prepare to be wowed!!

Simple, effective? Perhaps.

I got introduced to wine and started exploring through the Robert Parker and the 90+ pts

era. Then I graduated to experimenting with high-end food through the Michelin Guide

classification. As my wine journey matured, I got deep into the classification of 1855, learned more about DOCG in Italian classification, and Reserva for Spanish and Portuguese wines. Ever since this Michelin classification came, I’ve been thinking about the evolution of these

rating methodologies.

My perspective is the following, spoiler alert: no recommendation. While I might agree that the 1855, DOCG, Reserva, Puttonyos, Prädikat, etc., classifications are complicated, they were based on some tangible metrics.The 1855 classification of a vineyard was based on the quantity sold (i.e., popularity) and market price (like a stock price) of the wine in the region, albeit at that particular point in time. The DOCG system of Italy was based on Italy’s wine classification system, guaranteeing a wine’s geographic origin, strict production methods, and official flavor approval.

The Robert Parker and the Michelin Guide, while simple, seem to be more specific to a person’s or a few persons’ taste profiles and expectations of service standards. Effective in democratizing the consumption of wine, but a bit more subjective, perhaps?

At the end of the day, I do believe the best way to enjoy wine is through experimentation. Like anything else, it takes curiosity and learning to form your own informed opinion. Get closer to the winemakers/vineyards. It’s where the magic happens. If not possible, feel free to buy wines that have a rating number, by all means. Then read about the grapes, the story of the vineyard, the winemakers that made that bottle. Blind taste a few different rated wines with friends. You’d be surprised. You may like an 88-point wine better than a 94-point wine. Nothing wrong with that.

Do the same with Grand Cru Classé and DOCG versus other non-Grand Cru Classé Bordeaux and other ordinary Italian non-DOCG classified wines. See which classification or rating system works for you. If you dive deep, I suspect I know where you will land. But again, there is no right answer. 

The idea here is to figure out if you like the new sheriff or the old one.