I have in the past tried to construct a traditional point-based tasting scale [where you give X points for appearance, Y points for the smell, Z points for taste, etc.] based on those I have seen [e.g., the UC Davis 20 point system] but find those scales generally difficult to work with. Plus, assigning relative weights to each component evaluated is very problematic, as many of you have pointed out.
Instead, it seems to me that a simple subjective hedonic scale ought to be sufficient to do the trick. I think it fair to assume that people drink wine because it gives them pleasure to do so, so it seems reasonable that construct a scale that measures the degree of pleasure one derives from the wine evaluated.
It is hard for me to come up with a reasonable descriptive term for each of the values on the scale.
As you can see, the idea is that on a 10 point scale, a wine that scores a 5 (smack in the middle) provides neither pleasure nor displeasure, for lack of a better term, it is "pleasure-neutral".
Note that the idea is *not* to evaluate wines against other wines, thus I purposefully stayed away from the concept of "average", which implies relative position or value versus other wines. What I would like to measure is the effect of a wine on the taster, not whether the wine is better or worse than others like it.
The problem with this scale is to come up with suitable descriptive terms and possibly explanations for each which make it easy for tasters to accurately gauge their perceptions.
Below is my latest attempt at it. Note for example that the term "excellent" may not be a good one to use, since it does not seem fitting to one's perception. Will appreciate your suggestions.
HEDONIC TASTING SCALE
10 Great
9 Excellent
8 Good
7 Pleasant
6 Somewhat pleasant
5 Neither pleasant nor unpleasant; indifferent
4 Somewhat unpleasant
3 Unpleasant
2 Bad
1 Poor
0 Terrible
-- ================================================Do you like wine? Do you live in South Florida? Visit the MIAMI WINE TASTERS group at