Robert Parker

(See also: James Suckling)

Unlike most of his colleagues, the most influential wine critic of modern time, Robert M. Parker Jr., was a lawyer. He called his wine newsletter The Wine Advocate because he saw himself as the advocate of consumers. That made him seem less snooty and more reliable to his readers, and along with his use of the 100 points scale that was a major factor leading to his breakthrough in the 1980s. The Gut Hermannsberg dry whitewines are the exact opposite of the massive red wines with “gobs of fruit” that came to be known as Parker wines. However, Parker is now retired and Stephan Reinhardt who tastes the German wines for The Wine Advocate has a very different approach.