www.winespectator.com
The Wine Spectator is probably the world's biggest-selling terrestial wine publication and is hugely influential on the US wine scene. Its Web version has been around for a while and offers a comprehensive and very slick resource for the wine-lover. This is such a huge concern that there's no shortage of information of relevance to an International audience. However, there is also a large amount of information which pertains only to the US wine scene, and so the site misses out on a maximum five stars for readability.
The quality of journalism is high — as would be expected from a major publication — and there is a wealth of authorative material on the site, including a vast repository of archives from the magazine. The fact that it is so obviously commercial and carries so much high-profile advertising might raise questions over impartiality with some visitors.
Down the left hand edge of the screen is a navigation panel with buttons for the site's main sections. A solution had to be found to what could be a very crowded interface in this enormous site, and that has been done rather neatly: as each section button is clicked, it opens up a sub-menu that will stay on screen whilst you remain within that section. It closes-up again when you click elsewhere.
A major drawback is the graphic and gimmick-laden nature of much of the site. This, along with the size of its databases is presumably the reason that pages can often be slow to download.
The great majority of the site is free to access, but a subscription of $29.95 per annum is charged for access to the full database of over 80,000 tasting notes and to wine auction price files.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Daily Wine News The substantial resources behind the Spectator give it the clout necessary to guarantee access to the latest wine information. This section of the site files dozens of reports each day, from the latest vintage news, to new releases on the wine shelves, to checks on the hottest wines on the auction scene. Though much of the content is of interest primarily to US collectors rather than casual wine drinkers, it is undoubtedly one of the most comprehensive wine newsdesks on the Net.
Wine Search Whether you have access to 15,000 wines, or 85,000 wines depends on you paying your full subscription to the site. Otherwise the functionality is the same: query the Spectator's database by producer, region, wine type, vintage or price and it will show you a detailed tasting note, score and cellaring advice for matching wines. View Others Tasting Notes lets you read what other site visitors have to say about the wine, or you can even pen your own entry.
Library is the central reference point of the site and has hidden depths of wine information. Article Archives lets you read any major article from the print version of the Spectator, from 1994 up to the most recent but one issue. Wine Basics features an ABC of wine tasting, buying strategies, a glossary of wine terms, tips on storing and serving wine and guides to major wine regions.
Dining Another database to query, this one contains 2,000 brief reports on restaurants around the globe noted for their cuisine and wine lists. Don't expect to discover cosy neighbourhood finds: the Spectator concerns itself only with upmarket and expensive establishments. Nevertheless this is a very valuable resource for the foodie tourist with its menus, pricing details, lists of awards and contact details.
Forums The Spectator offers dozens of interactive discussion forums on everything from buying and selling wine, to dining and cooking, to tasting notes. You must sign-in to participate actively, supplying some personal data, though you can browse anonymously (‘lurking' in Net jargon). Again, the discussion is heavily biased towards US topics of interest.
Travel Query the Spectators hotel database, or read one of their travel-related articles. There are special ‘city issues' which focus on tourism and gastronomy in major world destinations.
OTHER FEATURES
The surface of this mammoth site has only been scratched with the features highlighted above. There are articles galore, competitions, polls and seasonal specials.
The quality of journalism is high — as would be expected from a major publication — and there is a wealth of authorative material on the site, including a vast repository of archives from the magazine. The fact that it is so obviously commercial and carries so much high-profile advertising might raise questions over impartiality with some visitors.
Down the left hand edge of the screen is a navigation panel with buttons for the site's main sections. A solution had to be found to what could be a very crowded interface in this enormous site, and that has been done rather neatly: as each section button is clicked, it opens up a sub-menu that will stay on screen whilst you remain within that section. It closes-up again when you click elsewhere.
A major drawback is the graphic and gimmick-laden nature of much of the site. This, along with the size of its databases is presumably the reason that pages can often be slow to download.
The great majority of the site is free to access, but a subscription of $29.95 per annum is charged for access to the full database of over 80,000 tasting notes and to wine auction price files.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Daily Wine News The substantial resources behind the Spectator give it the clout necessary to guarantee access to the latest wine information. This section of the site files dozens of reports each day, from the latest vintage news, to new releases on the wine shelves, to checks on the hottest wines on the auction scene. Though much of the content is of interest primarily to US collectors rather than casual wine drinkers, it is undoubtedly one of the most comprehensive wine newsdesks on the Net.
Wine Search Whether you have access to 15,000 wines, or 85,000 wines depends on you paying your full subscription to the site. Otherwise the functionality is the same: query the Spectator's database by producer, region, wine type, vintage or price and it will show you a detailed tasting note, score and cellaring advice for matching wines. View Others Tasting Notes lets you read what other site visitors have to say about the wine, or you can even pen your own entry.
Library is the central reference point of the site and has hidden depths of wine information. Article Archives lets you read any major article from the print version of the Spectator, from 1994 up to the most recent but one issue. Wine Basics features an ABC of wine tasting, buying strategies, a glossary of wine terms, tips on storing and serving wine and guides to major wine regions.
Dining Another database to query, this one contains 2,000 brief reports on restaurants around the globe noted for their cuisine and wine lists. Don't expect to discover cosy neighbourhood finds: the Spectator concerns itself only with upmarket and expensive establishments. Nevertheless this is a very valuable resource for the foodie tourist with its menus, pricing details, lists of awards and contact details.
Forums The Spectator offers dozens of interactive discussion forums on everything from buying and selling wine, to dining and cooking, to tasting notes. You must sign-in to participate actively, supplying some personal data, though you can browse anonymously (‘lurking' in Net jargon). Again, the discussion is heavily biased towards US topics of interest.
Travel Query the Spectators hotel database, or read one of their travel-related articles. There are special ‘city issues' which focus on tourism and gastronomy in major world destinations.
OTHER FEATURES
The surface of this mammoth site has only been scratched with the features highlighted above. There are articles galore, competitions, polls and seasonal specials.
COMMENTS
login to add a comment...Big, glossy and much more corporate than personal, this unashamedly commercial site will possibly divide visitors into love it or hate it camps. It caters mainly for a sector of the American public that views wine very much as a lifestyle product, embracing it along with cigars, European sports cars or stocks and shares: wine as a statement rather than a passion. For all that, it is one of the largest and most professional resources on the web and thus deserves its five-star place in this guide.
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