What if instead of reading one of the influential media outlets, such as “The Wine Spectator,” or Robert Parker in the “Wine Advocate,” you opted to invite 507 of your closest friends to sample over 6,000 glasses of wine blindfolded. Wouldn’t the traditionally more expensive wines favored by Robert Parker logically still come out ahead?

Well, there you go. No sooner do I see the controversial Alice Feiring speak, and begin reading her great new book, The Battle for Wine and Love: or How I Saved the World from Parkerization, have my own views about wine been subtly altered, in fundamental ways.

Christopher Hitchens, (quite a ringer for Andrew Lloyd Webber, isn’t he?) who has famously railed at religion in his recent book “God is Not Great,” has now sharpened his claws to move in on an equally formidable foe – the wine waiter. You know the type – the one who pushes the spoofed Brunellos going [...]