Ratings & reviews

We do moderate comments and reviews, purely to ensure that content published on The Wine Society's website is of value to members, and is fair and balanced. We're delighted to say that in the vast majority of cases, our members' input is just that!

We will normally approve comments for publication if they:
• Respect other members.
• Don't incite hatred on the basis of race, religion, gender, nationality or sexuality or other personal characteristic.
• Don't include obscenities.
• Don't reveal personal details, such as private contact details.
• Don't break the law (including libel, condoning illegal activity and breaking copyright).
• Are reasonably concise, and don't constitute spamming.
• Don't advertise commercial products and services. You may mention relevant products and services if they support your comment or review.
• In The Society's opinion are not likely to adversely affect The Society's reputation or business.
• Don't impersonate or falsely claim to represent a person or organisation.
• Are in English. Unfortunately, we do not currently have the resource to moderate comments in other languages.
• Are on topic.

If a review or comment does not meet the rules above, then we may remove it from the site, and we reserve the right to do so at any time. Where we choose not to publish a rating, comment or review for a reason other than those listed here, we will reply to the member concerned by email explaining our reasons and inviting them to make appropriate changes so that their input can be reconsidered. We also reserve the right not to publish reviews that mention other wine merchants and competitors.

Your review and your name will be displayed on our website. We may wish to use your comments and ratings in our literature or elsewhere online. Unless you specify otherwise, you are therefore agreeing in posting your comments that The Society has the right to use, edit, publish in any media, delete and/or store the whole or any part or parts of that post, and may quote you by name, without charge and without reference to you or anyone else.

Writing reviews for wines you have tasted can really help other members to decide what to buy or to try for the first time, so it’s a great way to contribute to The Society’s community of wine lovers. Just bear in mind that wine, in contrast to many other products that are reviewed online, is a matter of deeply personal taste, and that it’s therefore important to judge a wine on its quality and value, as opposed to purely on your personal taste. 
 
Below are some golden rules for writing a review helpful to other members, whether it’s positive or negative. We hope you find them useful. 

• Remember, wine is subjective. Wine preferences vary enormously, and long may that continue, so make your review less personal and more analytical. For example, did it match the Wine Society tasting note? If you’ve tried other wines from this region or grape, is it a good example of its type?  
• Consider value. Do you think that the wine you are reviewing performs well at the price you paid for it? A £6 wine deserves a little more generosity than a £50 wine for example. How much complexity, flavour, length and balance do you feel the wine offers at its price point? 
• Think about what you might find useful in another member’s review and try to incorporate it in your own. A little elaboration on your impressions, rather than short, unqualified reviews like ‘I loved this’ or ‘This wasn’t good’ will help other members to make more informed decisions.
• Avoid points systems. Points mean different things to different people. That’s why we’ve opted for a simple five-star system, which creates a level playing field and enables us to aggregate the scores for a clear overall picture.
• Align your stars with your comments. The appeal of plumping for a safe and solid three-star rating throughout is understandable, but not particularly helpful. If you’re enthused by a wine that’s especially well made, delivers a great drinking experience and offers superb value, it surely deserves five stars. By the same token, if you find it overpriced, unbalanced or devoid of personality, don’t be afraid to give it one star.
• Don’t review a faulty bottle. Faults such as bad corks or oxidation can occasionally affect even the grandest of bottles, and the rest of the batch shouldn’t be judged accordingly. Instead, tell Member Services about it right away, so that they can arrange a replacement, because we want you to get maximum pleasure from every bottle of wine you buy from The Society.
• Have fun doing it! We love feedback from our members and wine reviews are no exception. Don’t worry if you’ve never reviewed wine before, because there is no right or wrong way to convey your impressions. Describing taste in absolute terms is challenging, so consider what your nose and palate are telling you, try to identify what it reminds you of (it’s rarely grapes, we find!) and keep it simple. Your comments will be more likely to resonate with other members, so enjoy sharing them. And if you’ve had a dish that you particularly enjoyed with the wine, we’d all love to know about that too!