VALHALLA, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wine Enthusiast Companies, a media and commerce company that stands as the leading source of innovation and information around wine, has officially launched the Wine Enthusiast Ratings Platform. The new platform employs technology that simplifies the submission process, helping producers and importers enter information digitally, receive real-time status updates on submitted SKUs, and communicate more efficiently with the Wine Enthusiast Tasting Department. This infrastructure brings two major upgrades to the long-standing tasting and review program at Wine Enthusiast, a Certified B Corporation: 1) every wine and spirit submission is guaranteed to be reviewed if the SKU is imported in the U.S., and 2) all regions across the globe are now welcome to submit wines and spirits to be blind tasted and rated.
After taking a necessary halt in reviews for some regions in 2022, Wine Enthusiast announced in June that the company has been building a backend system for the last two years. The new Ratings Platform digitally notifies the Tasting Department of submissions in the queue and better prepares Tasting Panel members and top-of-the-line storage facilities for the intake of shipments. Additionally, the Ratings Platform provides the technology to organize the hundreds of thousands of reviews amassed from the Wine Enthusiast Tasting Panel for nearly 40 years and counting.
With this infrastructure in place, Wine Enthusiast has the capacity to widen its rating service to all regions around the world. The Ratings Platform will accept every wine and spirit that is imported into the United States for review. The processing fee is $65/SKU, which goes directly into supporting the new platform, producing the buying guides for producers and readers, and upholding the blind taste standards that consumers have come to expect from Wine Enthusiast. The media and commerce company continues to be one of the few trusted scoring entities that allows free access to its ratings with no barriers to Wine Enthusiast’s expertise.
The processing fee does not affect the score and has no bearing on the outcome of a wine or spirit’s rating. The Tasting Panel operates separately from the editorial and advertising departments, maintaining credibility in the market. The diverse panel brings fresh perspectives and scoring experience to the 25,000 reviews provided to readers each year. For a full list of the Wine Enthusiast Tasting Panel members including newly added reviewers and region assignments, click here.
“The Wine Enthusiast Ratings Platform is a benefit to every wine- and spirit-producing region around the world and in the United States,” said Jacqueline Strum, President of Wine Enthusiast Media. “It offers a new tool for wineries and distilleries to expand their reach and exposure to consumers. The U.S. beverage market relies on ratings and scores for building distribution and purchase consideration. Wine Enthusiast is committed to providing this service and doing so in a sustainable manner.”
For more information about Wine Enthusiast Companies, the Wine Enthusiast Ratings Platform, or for interview requests with the Wine Enthusiast executive team, contact Bonnary Lek.
ABOUT WINE ENTHUSIAST
Wine Enthusiast Companies is a Certified B Corporation and the ultimate source of innovation and information around wine. Founded in 1979 by Adam and Sybil Strum, the company is composed of Wine Enthusiast Commerce and Wine Enthusiast Media. Embodying the commerce side, the Wine Enthusiast Shop provides premium wine-lifestyle products, reaching millions of consumers globally via direct mail, an e-commerce site, and a business-to-business division. Representing the media side, Wine Enthusiast magazine is an award-winning print publication and online resource that showcases wine news, food trends, and more than 25,000 ratings and reviews annually. By the end of 2023, WineEnthusiast.com reached 4.5 million monthly pageviews and is the industry leader with the most traffic of any wine media website. Wine Enthusiast events include the annual premier Wine Star Awards gala. Together, Wine Enthusiast Companies is the indisputable hub for everything wine. We bring wine to life.
