Hella Drunk Rating System
Version 1.0
When it came to deciding how we were going to rate spirits at Hella Drunk, we did extensive research into existing rating systems used around the industry. Ultimately, we decided that our analytical roots called for the design of a new system rather than adopting one used elsewhere. Thus, the Hella Drunk Rating (HDR) system was born!
Now, some of you might have realized that "HDR" is also an acronym used in the TV industry, standing for "High Dynamic Range". This was an unintentional, but happy, coincidence. In TV land, HDR is a format that makes light colors brighter and deep colors darker, using the visible range to its fullest potential. That's similar to why we developed the Hella Drunk Rating System, except our measure of quality doesn't involve colored pixels on a screen (well, this is a website…). What's important is that many people say that HDR could change the way you watch TV. Who knows? Maybe our HDR will change the way you rate spirits!
Goals
When designing HDR, we had a few specific goals in mind:
Clarity
HDR should make it intuitive to understand how a reviewer feels about any given aspect of a spirit. Instead of just showing an overall score, we want readers to see how that score breaks down.
Range
Our ratings should utilize the full range of possible values within the system. We want to avoid the "clumping" problem of nearly all ratings existing within a small set of scores.
Impact
Not all aspects of a spirit have equal importance. Our system should reflect this by appropriate weighting the overall score.
Categories
HDR is broken down into five distinct categories, each of which provides a closer look into different aspects of a spirit:
Nose
This category awards points for how tantalizing the aroma of the spirit is. Does it smell like something we want to drink? Does it match our expectations for this type of spirit, or is it perhaps pleasantly unexpected? The nose generally gives us hints about what to expect from the palate, and it's an integral part to enjoying a great spirit. Don't skimp on nosing around!
Palate
The keys to this category are flavors that emerge when we take a sip of the spirit. What do we experience as it rolls over our taste buds? Do these flavors show off the quality of craft that we expect in a great spirit? What sensations are coming through with the flavors?
Finish
As we swallow the spirit, some flavors will linger or even change into something new. This final experience gives us a chance to savor what we tasted, and the longer it lasts, usually the better.
Complexity
Also referred to as "character", the complexity of a spirit refers to the intricacy of its different flavors. Can we detect different layers within the nose, palate, and finish, or is there more of one-note throughout? This category doesn't try to distinguish between good and bad complexity, because we generally believe that a spirit with more character is better. If the layers don't blend well within the overall experience, that will cause deductions in the previous three categories.
Uniqueness
Finally, we award points for the uniqueness of a spirit. How different is this from other spirits we've had? Is it bringing something unique to our tasting experience? Much like Complexity, it's possible for a bad spirit to score points in this category. However, that's ok, because we also believe that a great spirit will further distinguish itself by being a unique, unparalleled, experience.
Scoring
Our approach to scoring the Hella Drunk Rating system is two-fold. First, we assign scores to each of the categories detailed above. Each of these scores will exist on a simple 5-point scale, allowing for half-point intervals. This allows us to assign scores that are easy to understand without having to agonize too much over whether a spirit is an 86 or an 87, for example. Then, we will use these five scores to generate a weighted total out of 100. This allows the final scores to have more variance, as well as accounting for the different importance of each category. The best thing is, if you disagree with how we calculate the overall total, you can use the individual ratings to see what the score would be based on your own preferred weighting of each category!
Category Weights
Each category contributes to the overall score of 100 as follows:
- Nose (20 points)
- Palate (40 points)
- Finish (20 points)
- Complexity (10 points)
- Uniqueness (10 points)
As you can see, we've weighted the score heavily around the core tasting experience, while still allowing categories like complexity and uniqueness to have an impact on the final rating.
Category Examples
Eventually, this section will contain some examples of spirits we believe exemplify certain values within each category. We'll list them here so you can hold us accountable for the consistency and calibration of our rating system.
Calculation Examples
Let's take a look at a few mathematical examples to see how the system works.
Spirit A
This first spirit finishes stronger than it starts, but it bring much to the table that we haven't seen before.
- Nose: 3/5
- Palate: 3.5/5
- Finish: 4.5/5
- Complexity: 2/5
- Uniqueness: 2.5/5
The overall score would be calculated as follows:
20x3/5 + 40x3.5/5 + 20x4.5/5 + 10x2/5 + 10x2.5/5
or more simply…
4x3 + 8x3.5 + 4x4.5 + 2x2 + 2x2.5
That gives us a total score of 67! Now, you might look at that score and think it's pretty poor, but remember that HDR is calibrated to use the full range from 0 to 100, rather than clumping all the ratings into the top 30%. This theoretical whiskey is pretty enjoyable, certainly above average!
Spirit B
Our second example smells nice, but it doesn't back that up with anything too enjoyable. It seems like maybe they tried to bring too many flavors and they didn't blend well. Perhaps they experimented with a special cask finish, even.
- Nose: 3.5/5
- Palate: 2/5
- Finish: 1.5/5
- Complexity: 4.5/5
- Uniqueness: 4/5
Using the same quick math as above, the overall score would be…
4x3.5 + 8x2 + 4x1.5 + 2x4.5 + 2x4
We're left with a score of 53, which is right around average. Now, this contrived example shows why the category weights are important. If you were to add up the scores from Spirit A and Spirit B, you'd get 15.5/25 for both! However, it's clear from looking at the categories that while Spirit B brought something to the table in terms of unique character, the actual experience wasn't nearly as enjoyable as Spirit A. These are the kinds of differences that HDR is designed to highlight!
Spirit C
Ugh. There's not much to say about this spirit other than that it's just barely drinkable.
- Nose: 1.5/5
- Palate: 1.5/5
- Finish: 0.5/5
- Complexity: 1.5/5
- Uniqueness: 0/5
Quickly doing the math, we see this spirit scores an abysmal 20 out of a possible 100 points! It's very clear that while Spirit B might be ok to try if someone poured it for free, you likely would not enjoy Spirit C on its own. Maybe use it as lighter fluid? Ok, we're kidding (mostly), but this kind of score is not something you'd generally want to drink. You might be able to use it for a cocktail or mixed drink, but we're firm believers that poor ingredients make for a poor cocktail. So even then, be careful before you use a less than stellar spirit for your drinks. For more philosophy on the world of cocktails, visit our friends at The Cocktail Dork!
Spirit D
Our final example spirit is a bastion of quality, probably a premier release from a brand known for solid spirits year after year.
- Nose: 4/5
- Palate: 4.5/5
- Finish: 4.5/5
- Complexity: 4/5
- Uniqueness: 3/5
We finally have a real winner here, scoring a whopping 84 overall! Now, those of you used to other rating systems might look at those category scores and expect a much higher rating in the end. However, remember that HDR is designed to exhibit a high dynamic range (pun intended), and that managing to get a score above 80 indicates an extremely high quality spirit! If Spirit D were rated on the Parker Scale, for contrast, it would likely have a score in the low to mid 90s.
Calibration
As with any rating system, one of the most important parts of ensuring its success is making sure it's properly calibrated. If we start with ratings that are too high or low early on, we either end up with all of our ratings bunched together, or the early ratings lose too much value as we have to essentially ignore the precedents they set in relation to later ratings. As such, it's essential to be careful with our first reviews as we establish the system for long-term success.
While we'll be feeling things out at first to get started, we want to borrow an idea from the world of software development. When estimating tasks for a project, many teams avoid estimating in terms of time, but rather focus on complexity as a measure. The scale they use (Fibonacci sequence) has no meaning of its own, but rather garners its conceptual orientation from within the system itself. That is, a team decides what kind of task constitutes a 1, the smallest value that can be assigned. Then, they also decide what might be a 13 or 21, usually the highest values that get used from the sequence. Once the team has an agreed upon understanding of what it means to assign a task to numbers at both ends of the scale, they can use these concepts to assign future values based on how each new task relates to the previous ones.
In the same way, we're going to establish HDR by trying to calibrate what the top and bottom of each category means. More specifically, we're going to identify at least one example of a 1 and 4 in each category, separate from writing a review on those spirits. Then, we're going to use that basis to explore a few stalwart spirits that are readily available at any liquor store, to give us good examples of what that spirit should be like and how we feel about it. If we do it well, that will provide a solid foundation from which to launch our rating system. We hope you'll feel the same way, too!
Understanding Rating Systems is our primer on different ways the industry rates spirits, as well as why we developed our own scale. Check it out to learn more!