California chardonnay is the bench mark by which Americans seem to judge most other white wines.

He has been using the 100-point system to judge wines in his magazine for about a dozen years.

But it is not the only way to judge wines and, for most people, it is not the best.

"This is not bad, indeed, though I am not one to judge wines."

More important, perhaps, is the use of smell in judging wines.

In 2004 a panel judging European sparkling wines awarded most of the top ten positions to English wines - the remaining positions going to French Champagnes.

Since only a handful of experts can really judge very young wines, a lot of wine is wasted.

He was known in the sherry trade as "the Nose" for his ability to judge wines solely by their aroma.

The Spectator editors, who judge wines on a 100-point scale, rated the Beaucastel 1989 at 97 points.

You have to remember this when you think about judging wines.