Drink Different – Shock, Awe & 100 Points
| WHY WE DON’T CHASE SCORES – WE CHASE MOMENTS |
Wine loves a drama.
Every year, someone pulls a 98, someone gets a 100, and someone writes an article about “the most important bottle in South Africa right now.” Cue gasps. Cue applause. Cue the price hike.
But here’s the rebellious truth:
Most people don’t drink scores. They drink stories, vibes, and the moment they’re in when that cork pops.
And sensationalism?
It’s great for headlines, not so great for honest drinking.
At Black Elephant Vintners, we’ve been dodging the “Look at me, I’m a 100-pointer!” trend for years. Not because we can’t play the game — we can — but because chasing numbers feels a bit like chasing chart positions. Sure, it’s cool to hit #1, but it doesn’t mean the song is going to be your favourite forever.
So let’s unpack this whole points obsession with a little less panic and a little more perspective.
🎯 THE 100-POINT PROBLEM
Wine scoring was meant to simplify things.
Instead, it made everyone panic.
A 91?
“Nice but not life-changing.”
A 96?
“Should I remortgage the house?”
A 100?
“Please form an orderly queue and be prepared to fight.”
But here’s the thing no one likes to say out loud:
👉 A score is just one person’s playlist. Not the soundtrack of your life.
What critics love and what you love might be galaxies apart — and that’s okay. Wine is personal. Emotional. Contextual. And sometimes your best bottle is the one you opened at sunset with people you adore, not the one that got a standing ovation from a judge in a room full of fluorescent lights.
🎤 SENSATIONALISM SELLS — BUT DOES IT SERVE YOU?
The wine world has always enjoyed a bit of theatre.
Big reveal. Loud headline. Limited release. Gone in 60 seconds.
It’s exciting. It’s fun.
But it can also make wine feel like a sport where only the “elite” get to play.
That’s not our vibe.
At BEV, we want wine to feel like music:
Accessible, joyful, emotional, available to everyone — not locked behind velvet ropes.
Scores may move cases, but moments move people.
🎧 OUR PHILOSOPHY: MOMENTS OVER MEDALS
We don’t send wines off to every competition because we already know what our consumers tell us every weekend:
“This wine makes me happy.”
“This is the bottle I bring to friends.”
“This is the one I open when the playlist is perfect.”
That’s our metric.
That’s our scoreboard.
If the moment is right, the wine is perfect.
🥂 THE EXPERIENCE BEATS THE NUMBER. ALWAYS.
Let’s compare:
📈 A 97-point bottle
- Tastes exceptional
- Comes with bragging rights
- Costs more by the hour
🎶 A “moment” bottle
- Connects people
- Sparks stories
- Makes memories
- Doesn’t need permission from a judge to be great
Guess which one we make?
🎸 SO… ARE SCORES BAD?
Not at all.
They’re a useful reference. They help you discover producers. They add excitement to the industry.
But they’re not the final word.
Your palate is.
Your memories are.
Your soundtrack is.
We’re not anti-scores — we’re anti-pressure.
We’re here to make wine fun again.
💡 THE BEV WAY FORWARD: REBELLION WITH A SMILE
Black Elephant Vintners isn’t built on podiums.
We’re built on stories, joy, music, chaos, colour, humour, honesty — and the belief that wine is meant to be shared, not scored.
So the next time you see “100 points!” splashed across your feed, pause and ask:
“But will I love it at my table? With my people? With my soundtrack?”
That answer matters more.
🥂 DRINK DIFFERENT
If you’re here for medals and whisper-quiet tasting rooms, we might not be your people.
If you’re here for wine with soul, character, joy, rebellion, and a playlist?
Welcome home.
Cheers,
Skye — Chief Distributor of Liquid Happiness
Black Elephant Vintners