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The World of Fine Wine is an internationally acclaimed wine journal published by The Quarto Group Inc.

As Hugh Johnson puts it: “The World of Fine Wine takes wine journalism in a new, more sophisticated direction. It is not a consumer magazine, but the first cultural journal of the wine world. It acknowledges that wine-lovers have other interests too, and the same high standards in whatever they do. The first seven years have been a remarkable demonstration of new possibilities, I know I don't want to read the same old marketing jargon ever again”.

We hope to produce something that is neither dominated by fad or fashion, nor one individual’s palate, nor the latest over-hyped wines; something that is much more than a ratings magazine, even though our own tastings play an important role; something that subscribers will want to keep on their shelves because it has lasting value.

The biggest distinguishing features are the range of the subject matter, and the depth of the treatment. We publish articles on topics ranging from the Ancient Greeks and Romans right up to the latest en primeur releases. We have articles by authoritative writers who have been given the space to treat their subject seriously. Of course an article doesn’t have to be long to be worthwhile, any more than a wine has to be old to be fine; but complex subjects require space if they are not to be oversimplified. While some of the articles are shorter, our major features are up to 10,000 words long - that’s several times longer than those in other magazines.

The way we organize our tastings is also different. We make every effort to source all of the best bottles, regardless of price or rarity. We have only three tasters for each tasting - an acknowledged "specialist" on the subject and two experienced "generalists" selected from a fixed panel of 34 (including Hugh Johnson, Jancis Robinson MW, Andrew Jefford, Michel Bettane, Michael Schuster and Tom Stevenson). This allows all comments and scores to be attributed individually and reproduced in full (so no composite notes). And in the few cases where the personal preferences of the tasters are not already well known, they will quickly become so. The system combines the advantages of a highly respected single taster with the benefits of an established, expert panel, where a range of views can be expressed or mutually reinforced.

Neil Beckett, Editor