Michelin to Launch Its Own Wine Rating System, Calling It ‘More Powerful’ Than Parker’s

Six years after acquiring The Wine Advocate, Michelin is finally stepping into wine criticism itself.
The French brand, best known for its world-famous restaurant ratings, is planning to launch an independent wine evaluation system — one that it claims will rival, and even surpass, Robert Parker’s legacy.

According to The Times, the announcement was made during the Michelin Hotel Awards ceremony in Paris, where Gwendal Poullennec, International Director of the Michelin Guide, confirmed that the company would begin conducting its own wine reviews. Florent Menegaux, Chairman of the Michelin Group, described the move as “a mission to conquer the world.”

Known globally as both a tire manufacturer and a restaurant guide publisher, Michelin’s anonymous reviewers and rigorous standards have made it one of the world’s most trusted arbiters of fine dining. The Michelin Guide now spans 69 countries and rates more than 2,000 hotels — and with this latest move, it appears poised to expand its reach into wine.

From Restaurant Stars to Wine Scores

In fact, Michelin’s foray into wine has been years in the making.

In 2017, the company acquired a 40% stake in The Wine Advocate, the influential publication founded by the late “Wine Emperor” Robert Parker, and completed a full takeover in 2019.

Until now, The Wine Advocate and the Michelin Guide have operated largely independently. The two brands did, however, collaborate on a year-long dining series in Hong Kong and Macau, pairing Michelin-starred chefs with Parker-rated wines to highlight the connection between cuisine and fine wine.

Details of Michelin’s new wine rating initiative remain scarce, and no official press release has yet been issued. Poullennec said only that the new system might “build on or rebrand” The Wine Advocate’s existing framework.

How Will Michelin Judge Wine?

While the details are still under wraps, some clues can be gleaned from Michelin’s existing approach to restaurants and hotels.

The wine rating system will likely maintain the brand’s signature model of anonymous reviews paid for by the company, ensuring independence and credibility.

While Parker’s system relied on a 100-point scale, Michelin could instead adopt a three-tier format — mirroring its iconic star ratings for restaurants (one to three stars) and the new Michelin Key system for hotels (one to three keys), with a possible “Bib Gourmand”-style category for quality wines at accessible prices. (Could it take the form of a Michelin Glass system — one to three glasses?)

The framework may also follow a regional approach, much like how Michelin reviews cities. Instead of individual bottles, the guide could focus on wine regions — from Bordeaux to Napa Valley to Barossa Valley — highlighting standout producers and appellations.

From Loss-Making Guide to Global Business

The move also reflects Michelin’s broader transformation from a prestige brand into a diversified digital business.

Poullennec has said that when he joined the company more than 20 years ago, the Michelin Guide was losing money and relied largely on sales of its iconic red guidebooks in Western Europe.

Today, the Michelin Guide website and free mobile app attract around 9 million monthly visitors, nearly half of them from the United States. The company has monetized its online reservation system, taking a 10%–15% commission per booking. Its recently launched hotel rating system has also opened a new revenue stream through booking partnerships.

Moreover, Michelin has forged partnerships with dozens of national and local governments worldwide. Its most recent collaboration, with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture, will result in a Saudi edition of the Michelin Guide launching in October.

A New Era for Wine Ratings?

If successful, Michelin’s entry into wine could redefine how the industry measures quality. Its combination of brand prestige, global recognition, and commercial acumen may give it an edge even Parker never achieved.

But for now, the wine world is watching — and waiting — to see whether Michelin’s next rating system will shine as brightly in the glass as it has on the plate.