First write the review then taste the wine

Perhaps it's really no more than a storm in a wine glass but prominent wine book publisher Mitchell Beazley is getting some off flavours in reviews of the latest edition of "The Juice 2010" written by Matt Skinner, an influential wine writer who oversees wine operations for Jamie Oliver's Fifteen restaurant group around the world. The cause of the criticism is the admission that Mr Skinner has put in tasting notes for wines he had not tasted, because they were not even bottled, when he finished writing. Apparently the publisher put the author under bit of pressure to take this unusual course because, as Hilary Lumsden, Mitchell Beazley commissioning editor, told Decanter.com: "For our first edition, in 2006, the feedback we got was that by the time people went out and bought the book, the wines were already off the shelves, so the book was effectively out of date."
And as for Mr Skinner, in a statement to London's Daily Telegraph, he defended not tasting some of the vintages, arguing that he had tasted previous vintages of the same wine. "It is imperative that I taste all the wines that I recommend," he said. "However there are some releases that are consistent from year to year, and as popular, good value and accessible wines I want to include them because I know that my readers will appreciate them. "In order to do so I include non-specific tasting notes based on the current and previous year's vintage, focusing more on basic flavours and compatibility with food."
The Telegraph gave an example of one of these "non-specific tasting notes" - that for the Vasse Felix Sémillon Sauvignon Blanc from Margaret River, priced at £11.99. It reads: "The palate is fresh as a daisy and punctuated by the kind of lip-smacking acidity that makes this wine almost impossible to put down." Not a bad wrap for an untasted wine.