I can understand why they made eBob a subscriber-only board. It didn’t make them any money, didn’t enhance the brand and, in fact, served as a forum for people to dis Parker and WA. It was just a big headache to them, though partly of their own making.
What’s happening to the brand now is another story, but also probably inevitable once the world realized that there wasn’t a lone oracle divining all truth about wine. The Internet was the death of that notion (and of truth, but that’s another story). It’s pretty common for a business built around one person to go into decline when that person sells out.
As for turnover in reviewers, no wine publication pays well these days. It made a nice living for Parker in the days when he had 25,000+ subscribers and hardly any overhead. But you can’t pretend the entire wine world alone today, so you have to have lots of critics. But how to pay for them? It’s hard to see that the events can really sustain all these reviewers.
I recall it was at about that level in the late 80s or early 90s. I don’t have my back issues here, or I could check the postal ownership statement, which you have to publish in an issue once a year to qualify for publishers postage rates. I think it was higher. But I think the subscription was only $50 or so back in those days. Still, 25,000 x $50 would be $1.25M annually. Even with wine purchases, it was a nice little business. At that rate, you could afford to pay a couple of other writers a decent living, plus someone to handle sub orders, and Jay Miller to set up tastings.
Also was a 30 year subscriber to WA, and finally pulled the plug a couple years ago. The only thing I miss at the moment (aside from the board, which has been replaced by WB) is getting William Kelley’s notes, now that he is there. Hopefully Antonio will bring him into Vinous soon.
Williams notes are great. Killer palate. Ironically, I am drinking a 2017 Bouland right now that he raves about. And he’s dead on point. Turn WA over to him and I re-join.
Uncle Bob also made money from his books, and I have to assume, other sources as well.
Welcome aboard! But what the heck too you so long, there’s a reason you see all the sign up dates under avatars here from 09/10 span. Do they still @&$@$”@ out wineBerserkers?
I guess I stayed out of misguided loyalty. The few people who are still posting there are pretty good. Squires is still good. If they had been able to keep Antonio or Jeb, I might still be there.
I remember paying about $50 / yr. I still have my paper copies and I thank the WA for helping me navigate the madness, I mean hobby / obsession back in the day. Now I subscribe to my own palate…
I disagree. It was a popular and vibrant forum that definitely enhanced the brand. It was the misguided authoritarian mindset of Parker, bent on protecting his image as The God of Wine, the ultimate authority on the objective quality of wine, flawless in his aging predictions. It was years before this all snowballed to the point of open conflict. Squires was the lackey following orders and willingly taking the flak as if those were his own decisions. They made it a headache on themselves. Entirely their own making. Parker couldn’t stand a diversity of opinion and was entirely incapable of understanding how varied individual perception is, thinking of it as a linear hierarchy, with himself as the best. Anyone who perceived a wine he rated highly as less good just wasn’t being honest and had some sort of nefarious agenda to take him down.
I keep my WA account active for the database. I tried to quit but the history or reviews is surprisingly valuable to me. Well, at least worth the price of admission. The BB over there has been dead for years. There are only a handful of guys still posting. I check in every so often and am amazed at the lack of activity.
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