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There is a plethora of wine assessments published and reported by a number of organisations. The purpose is to assist the potential wine buyer consumers and trade alike to form an opinion on the quality of the wine. Unlike tasting notes they can be easily understood and provide a measurable guide. Trying to comprehend what all the scores, medals and star ratings mean can be confusing because there is not a universal system. It must also be remembered that a wine that scores very high in one competition or publication may not fare as well in a subsequent assessment. There are any number of reasons for this. Wine is a living substance, its character and quality changes with ageing and is affected by the environment in which it is stored and how it has been shipped. In professional wine tastings all wines are tasted blind, ie without the taster knowing the maker or brand so that the evaluation can be impartial. Wine competitions are conducted by a panel of experienced tasters in wine flights of the same variety and vintage. In the event that panellists judge the wines differently (one rejecting a wine and another awarding gold), the chief judge recalls the wine and it is reevaluated. The 20point system New Zealand wine competitions are judged on the 20point system: three points for appearance, seven for bouquet and 10 for flavour (See detailed chart). Gold medal wines score 18.5 to 20 marks, silver medals score 17 to 18.4 points, and those that score 15.5 to 16.9 points are awarded bronze medals. Trophies are awarded to the wine in that class that earns the highest marks. The 100mark system Robert Parker, who publishes a bimonthly wine letter, The Wine Advocate, is probably the most influential wine critic in the world. He marks wines out 100, starting initially with 50 points, then awards five points for colour and appearance, 15 points for aromas and bouquet, and 20 points for flavour and merit. | 
