Sake shenanigans at Parker's house?

[Robin Garr]

What do you folks think? Is Blake Gray on to something here, or is this just more Parker-bashing? It looks like a pretty sketchy situation to me ...

The Wine Advocate sake story, one year later

Last September, I discovered that a single company was selling all 78 sakes rated 90 points or more by the Wine Advocate -- and only those 78 sakes, nothing else. Prices for those sakes, some of which were difficult to obtain elsewhere, were in some cases significantly higher than their original release prices from the breweries.

I discovered that this company, The Taste of Sake, had connections to RobertParker.co.jp, and to the former employer of Lisa Perrotti-Brown, the Wine Advocate's Editor-in-Chief. Here are the two original posts: the first one
http://blog.wblakegray.com/2016/09/a-cu ... ocate.html
and the followup.
http://blog.wblakegray.com/2016/09/some ... -sake.html

After my first post, Ms. Perrotti-Brown wrote, "We are investigating the facts behind these allegations ... What we need to establish is if that company had access to any of the sake notes or scores prior to publication, which is a situation we take the utmost measures to avoid. Even the suggestion that this could have happened is a matter we take very seriously."

A year has passed. I have been asked by many people if I have any more facts on the investigation. I do not. The Taste of Sake site was taken down and is not up today. ...

Full report here:
http://blog.wblakegray.com/2017/09/the- ... -year.html

[David M. Bueker]

Taking off my tin-foil hat, I bet they only approached one company for samples, and when that looked bad they ran and hid under the covers. Somehow I doubt there is some killing to be made in providing hyped sake scores.

But overall it's just the latest mis-step by the Wine Advocate team.

[Robin Garr]

... Somehow I doubt there is some killing to be made in providing hyped sake scores.

But overall it's just the latest mis-step by the Wine Advocate team.

Right. The uproar would be much louder if it had involved, say, Pomerol or Napa. But it certainly hints at a way of doing business that the old Parker would have loudly disclaimed.

I thought I remembered from last year's dustup about this that there were hundreds of samples, but the tasting coordinator worked for the company that used to emply Ms. Perrotti-Brown (and controls the Japanese Parker site and the company that was set up to sell the highest rated sakes)?

They're working hard to monetize the brand
http://michelinguidegala.com/