How ratings work

NogLog ratings are meant to be quick to give and fair to read. Here is the whole system.

The scale

Ratings run from half a star to five stars, in half-star steps. Each step has a name, because "3.5" doesn't tell you much but "Good nog" does.

The labels show up when you rate, so you can pick the words that match how the nog felt.

Would you buy it again?

Separately from the stars, every log can answer one question: would you buy it again? Yes or no. A nog can be a four-star "really good" and still not a repeat purchase, and that's useful to know. Nog pages show the share of raters who said yes.

Flavor tags

Tags describe what you tasted: creamy, custardy, thin, rich, light, smooth, sweet, spiced, nutmeg-forward, vanilla, boozy, eggy, too sweet, overspiced, artificial and waxy aftertaste. You can pick up to five on a log.

The last four are there on purpose. A tag list that can only flatter would make every nog sound the same, and then the tags would be useless.

How the average is counted

The number on a nog page is the average of one rating per person per season. If you log the same nog five times in one season, every log stays in your journal, but only your latest rated log counts toward that season's average. This keeps a single enthusiastic drinker from deciding a nog's fate.

• The count you see is the number of distinct raters. The number of logs can be higher, and we show both.
• Under three raters, the average is hidden and the page says "Not enough ratings yet".
• The all-time figure adds up each season's one-per-person ratings, so someone who rates the same nog every year counts once per year.

Per-season stats

Every log belongs to a season, which runs from 1 September to the end of August (September 2026 is the start of Season 2026). Nog pages let you compare "this season" with "all time", because a nog's recipe can change from one year to the next and last year's verdict may not hold.

Rankings

Every ranked list on NogLog names its leaderboard, such as store-bought, local dairy, restaurant and bar, boozy, plant-based or light. A nog can appear on several boards when it qualifies for several, but a list is never a blend of them under one heading. "The best store-bought nog" and "the best local dairy nog" are different questions, and we answer them separately.

Only nogs with enough ratings get a place on community lists. We don't fill a board with guesses to make it look full.

What the critics said

Nog pages can include a section called "What the critics said": published taste tests from newspapers, magazines and food sites, with the outlet, the year, their verdict and a link to the original. They are shown as their own thing, never mixed into the community average. Critics are one palate on one afternoon; you are many palates across a whole season. Both are interesting.