Adjusting your ratings?

When I started rating beers, I deliberately stayed away from 5s so that there was "room" to grow.

I only adjust ratings when I drink a previously rated beer and determine that my old rating was decidedly different from my present experience.

 

If I drink particular beers a second, third, fourth time, etc. and get a better appreciation of it, you bet your butt that I'm going to go re-review the beer. By that I mean, I'm going to add a new review under the old review without changing the old review or the initial score- but if I feel it clearly merits a score change, I'll do that. But that's the way I go with the more special/rare beers that I get to try again later, or different vintages of these beers.

To illustrate with an example: my favorite beer, Cantillon Fou' Foune (http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/388/5281/?ba=Stevedore). It's like a nice running diary of each time I have it because they're always at a different age each time, and it's always interesting for me to compare the latest tasting notes to my previous "reviews within the review" and I learn more about how a beer evolves over time. And it definitely gives me more appreciation for a particular beer.

I don't for one second believe that anyone gives more than a passing interest in my reviews, but this way, I may gain a bit more knowledge and more opportunities for more self-awareness about the beers I drink.

 

I have done it a couple times, but not anymore. Sometimes, if my second experience is dramatically different from the first, I'll make a note at the end of the review. But really, it's refreshing to be able to just drink a beer without worrying about reviewing it. If I started comparing experiences with previous reviews, it would become exhausting.

The fact remains that ratings can't be perfect, or anywhere near perfect. I have thought I overrated and underrated some beers because of circumstances. 2 oz. of some beers tastes great and 2 oz. of other beers is dull. I find myself wondering what I was thinking when I have a full glass of an imperial stout that I had previously loved when I only had to drink a few ounces. Then I find myself thoroughly enjoying saisons that I had thought were boring when I only had a few ounces.

And @Stevedore , you'd be surprised how many people read your reviews and catalog whether you're like-minded or not. When I look at a beer I always sort by "Top Reviewers" so I can see what certain people think. When a name comes up frequently on new releases, they're the ones I read first. Your name, and UCLABrewN84 for that matter, pops up on new releases a lot, so there are certainly people reading them. When I started reviewing, I figured no one would care what I posted about a beer, but I've had people message me shortly after posting a review arguing with me about my rating. It's kind of a startling thing to realize that there are actually people who care what you write, for whatever reason, good or bad.

 

I probably adjust my ratings every 6 months or so (and not always upwards). I do this for many reasons, but primary they are references for my own use.

 

"You can never recapture your innocence".

Classic...enough said...

 

I was doing Untappd before I was ticking here. Lots of beers got a 5 for me on Untappd. Now that I have more experience I looked at it as an opportunity to drink those "5" beers again. Right now out of 1182 beers 11 are a 5 and I can see at least 2 of them getting knocked down if I get a chance to drink them again. On BA I only have 4 listed as a "5" out of 1017.

I wouldn't recalibrate your personal bell curve but I would look at it as an opportunity to revisit your past beers.

 

If I'm revisiting a beer for the n'th time and I don't agree with my previous rating, only then will I update. Doesn't happen very often.