The judging team includes winemakers, wine show judges, food journalists, restaurant critics, sommeliers and restaurateurs. Nobody scores lists they have been personally involved in submitting. Collectively the team has above-average knowledge of restaurants, wines and wine lists. And often, first-hand experiences of the range and service offered in some venues. A score of 60 – 80 points achieves a Gold award, while 80 – 100 points achieves Platinum. In addition, restaurants are asked to provide documentation of trained wine stewards and temperature-controlled cellars if they want to apply for an Award of Excellence, whereby they must score 85 points or more.

As always, a few issues impressed, amused or irritated judges – the proviso being that if you are a restaurant diner, you want to enjoy a streamlined, user-friendly wine experience with your meal.

Corkage was a biggie during 2007 entries. Scores were awarded for whether a restaurant indicated their corkage policy in a visible area of their wine list. If "Bring Your Own" (BYO) wasn’t allowed, or the corkage was high, that wasn’t the issue. It was only that the customer must be made aware of the restaurant’s policy without undue awkwardness.

Too many restaurants still don’t understand the meaning of "corkage". One wine list stated "corkage welcome", while another venue’s policy was "We don’t do corkage", contradicting their intentions entirely. It’s the BYO process they’re allowing or not; corkage refers to the fee charged for opening the wine! It led to judge Clive Torr saying tongue in cheek that he’d like to see the term "screwcappage" introduced. I particularly liked the large, no-nonsense font used by The Palace at Sun City, stating "Palace corkage fee". An explanatory paragraph designed for customer education, described suitable protocol for when BYO wines might be appropriate (Something special or something unlikely to be on the wine list. Expect to pay more for a magnum etc). The last sentence ensured that the sommelier gets something from the experience too: “When the wine is opened, it’s common courtesy to offer the sommelier a taste of your wine.” The corkage policy of the more casual 96 Winery Road restaurant in Stellenbosch, drew a tongue-in-cheek analogy between brain cells being killed off by alcohol and the slower, weaker wildebeest being killed off in a herd. How fabulous that these wine-loving restaurants entertain the diner while informing them of a necessary policy.

Descriptions for wines on some lists were interesting, from a Sauvignon Blanc being described as "light as a negligee" to a Rosé description as "gorgeous from top to toe". One contemporary Cape Town restaurant submitted a newspaper-format newsletter called The Daily Dine, filled with tabloid-format snippets about their chef, cocktails and beers. They also submitted a wine bottle with a shortened wine list printed as a wine label. An Indian restaurant from Johannesburg even sent an embroidered cushion and spices for DIY Rogan Josh in their submission.