It is pointed out in the passage that the practice of awarding numerical grades to wines ____ .

In the coming weeks, wine makers north of the equator
will oversee the harvesting and fermenting of the first
vintage of the millennium. But long before the finished
product reaches the shelves - before it even makes it out
of the barrel, in some cases - samples will be offered to
exporters and distributors. A select group of wine critics
will also be given a taste. Most will record their
impressions in the extravagant prose that wine journalists
unfortunately love to use. Others will go one step further
and assign numerical grades. These days a high score is
more effective than mere praise. it can make a
comparatively unknown wine into a highly desirable one
that everyone is seeking to buy.