Currently celebrating four decades as one of the most prestigious and recognized wine critics in the world, James Suckling was born in Los Angeles in 1958, although he has been based in Asia for many years. His website is a reference of enormous value for producers and enthusiasts from all over the world who devour his tasting notes, articles and rankings.

You are celebrating 40 years as a wine critic… Are you very different now from the ‘young Suckling’ who started back in 1981 as an editor at Wine Spectator?

I certainly am different. I have the gray hair to prove it. But seriously I have tasted and rated about 250,000 wines in my life now and spent decades travelling the wine world, walking the vineyards and speaking to winemakers. I have a much better understanding of the world and I am impressed with how much outstanding quality wine is made in the world today. It’s never been a better time to be a wine consumer.

Has it been 2020 the most difficult year in these four decades? Have you missed travelling around the world, reporting and tasting in different wine regions, being in contact with winemakers, events, etc.?

It’s been difficult but it has also been rewarding. I worked much harder with my team of 15 to develop more in our wine coverage with almost everything based in Hong Kong. And it has worked with more than 18,000 wines rated last year and hundreds of Zoom  calls and interviews with producers. Our subscriptions have doubled to our website. Luckily, we are in Hong Kong and there is a no tax system on wines so shipping and logistics to the island are very easy.

In your opinion, what will it be the influence of this pandemic in  the world of wine, especially in terms of marketing, the appearance of new formats, etc.?

I think that people will continue to buy more wine on-line and look forward to having an on-line wine experience with the off-line ones such as in restaurants, wine shops, home meals, and winery visits.

Your website jamessuckling.com is now 10 years old, what is your view on this transition from paper to digital?

We were always digital. I am happy that the world has caught up with us. (Joke)  It’s all digital now. I can’t remember the last time I bought a newspaper or magazine.

Since then, you and your team have tasted and rated more than 120,000 wines from all over the world. How do you taste and manage such a volume ?

I have a solid tasting team in Hong Kong as well as top tasters in China, Germany and Australia. We are all calibrated together and we believe in the same ideas and concepts for wine. We love balanced and real wines that reflect where they are from.  And we are extremely well organized with logistics and computer systems to keep track of what wines we review. We are currently rating about 500 wines per week.

What are the characteristics that a wine must have, for you to award it 100 points?

A 100-point wine has incredible balance and character with everything in the right place and it must carry an incredible emotional boost to the experience of tasting and drinking it. Emotion is something so human and when a wine touches your heart and soul it has to be 100 points.

As a curiosity, in your travels around the world you carry your own glasses designed by a prestigious French firm. What is so special about those glasses?

I like the design (obviously) and it shows the wines in a clear and transparent way. Many other glasses such as Zalto micro-oxidize the wines and changes the character. Plus I can use the glass for all wines. It’s a universal glass. It was designed in homage to the classic Riedel class for red from 1958, which I started using in the 1980s.

In 2018 you founded 'James Suckling Wine Central' in Hong Kong, how would you describe this very special place?

James Suckling Wine Central is my wife’s restaurant and we consider it our home with more than 500 wines by the glass with Coravin and about 800 wines on the list from current drinking chardonnays from Uruguay to ancient bottles of Barolo. We also have a nice selection of Spanish wines. The food is Korean and American because I am American and my wife is Korean. I eat and drink there almost every day. We have everything from organic California steaks and Korean chicken to tacos and kimchi. It’s fun.

Your influence as a critic is worldwide, but is especially important on the Asian market. Is this interest in the world of wine still growing there?

The interest in fine wine is growing across Asia, especially in China, Korea, Thailand and Japan, even Vietnam. We are followed across Asia on various platforms as well as through luxury magazines such as Prestige and Noblesse. However, North America is our strongest market. We estimate that we have about 4 million followers around the world with our website, social media, magazine collaborations and Masterclass.com. Or social media channels with Facebook and Instragram often reach 1.5 million people a week.

Let's talk about Spain. What is your opinion about the real positioning of Spanish wine in the world?

I think that Spain still has a lot of work to do to position its wines better especially in Asia. The western world sees it still as excellent value wine producer with a few great wines. And Asia doesn’t really know it. But there is so much more to Spain. We love the wines and the unique character they have. And we appreciate the move from overextracted and overoaked wines to fresher and wonderfully drinkable wine in the true tradition of Spain.  The world of food and wine in Spain is awesome and this needs to be better communicated. We looked forward to our Spanish wine tastings this summer, which will be done in Hong Kong.

You have travelled many times to Rioja, what would you tell a new consumer about the wines from the region?

Rioja is the heart and soul of Spanish wines. May be I fell in love with the wines when I read about them in a few Hemingway books in the 1970s and then I went to Spain in 1983. But I enjoy going to Rioja every year and tasting and feeling the joy of Spain.

The wines of La Rioja Alta, S.A. appear prominently  in your reports on Rioja. What would you highlight about the oenological trajectory of our winery?

You hold on to Spanish traditions firmly and produced real and top quality wines. You are here and always will be in the psyche of Spanish wine.

The last one. Choose a vintage and a wine from La Rioja Alta, S.A. to enjoy on your next trip to Haro, which we hope will be soon...

I would like to taste the La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 890 2005 again. I loved its incredible personality and sensibility of classic Rioja.