A Man of Influence
Directions
In the pantheon of Modern Australian Wine Heroes, one stands out like the proverbial… A man with a huge personality - and appetite to match. A producer, writer, advocate, authority, and (by his own admission) a prodigious consumer of fine wine, he is widely regarded as the man who transformed Australia into a major force in the world of wine.
Len Evans AO, OBE (1930 - 2006)
Len was an English-born Welshman. An intelligent and gifted young man who was so besotted with golf (a lifelong affliction) that he rejected scholarships to Cranwell (RAF college) and Cambridge (to read architecture) in favour of a career in golf.
In 1952, disillusioned with his pro golfing experience and disgruntled with English post-war life in general, Len emigrated to New Zealand (and subsequently Australia). He did the hard yards - labouring in NZ and Australia as a timber-feller, a horseman, and a car muffler factory hand. After a stint as a dingo-fencer near Boulia in far western Queensland, Len understandably found himself seduced by the bright lights and sophistication of Mount Isa. There, writing sketch comedy for the local dramatic society, he fell heavily for his leading lady - Miss Mount Isa 1956, Patricia Hayton. Len proposed; Trish held out.
He moved south to Sydney, where he found occasional work writing radio scripts - and more regular work washing glasses at Circular Quay’s Ship Inn. When he graduated from glass washer to stock manager, Trish relented. They married in July ’59.
The Chevron
Sydney changed irrevocably in 1960, when the Chevron Hilton opened. Australia gained its ‘first international hotel’, and the Ship Inn lost its stock manager. Over the ensuing 5 years Len progressed from Stock Controller to Beverage Manager to Assistant General Manager – promotions that came on the back of hard work and a few genius innovations. Like the First Thursday Club – a tasting event that brought merchants and wine professionals together to analyse and appreciate fine Aussie wines.
The Promoter
Len’s talent for promotion was core to his success. He penned Australia’s first regular wine column in 1962; by the 1970s, his columns (often written under pseudonym) were everywhere: The Australian; The Sun Herald; The Bulletin… The Womens Weekly. He co-wrote - with Graham Kerr - The Galloping Gourmet, and pioneered food and wine programs (or as they’re now known: lifestyle shows) on TV.
The Entrepreneur
In the 1970s, and into to the 80’s (when lunches were long and ruinous) Len’s (in)famous wine shop and restaurant, Bulletin Place, was THE watering hole for wine fanciers and professionals. Blessed with an exceptional palate, and an extraordinary memory, Len loved nothing better than blind tastings. The game he invented to test his guests’ palates and knowledge – The Options Game – is still a favourite of wine students and professionals everywhere.
The Visionary
Though a vocal promoter of Australian wine, Len loathed parochialism, describing himself more as an Internationalist. He loved fine wine – irrespective of its provenance. And he knew that, in order to continue to improve, it was essential that Aussie wine professionals be able to benchmark their wines against the very best in the world. To that end, in 2001, he established the Len Evans Tutorial - Australia’s most prestigious and prized annual wine tasting program.
We are all the beneficiaries of his foresight. Illustrious alumni include winemakers Adam Carnaby (Seppelt), Marie Clay (Wolf Blass), Sarah Pidgeon (Wynns Coonawarra), and Shavaughn Wells (Penfolds) – as well as writers Nick Stock, Tyson Stelzer and Mike Bennie.
The Man
Len Evans didn’t suffer fools - and to be fair, there were quite a few bright people that he also declined to suffer. “Autocratic, didactic, caustic” is how his good friend (acclaimed wine writer, Jancis Robinson) described him, “But he was also unfailingly enthusiastic, uproariously entertaining and an unstoppable force for good in wine.” And he surely knew what wine was for. It was his greatest delight to open and share the best. On his 50th birthday, he poured for his guests a bottle he’d been saving for a special occasion. It was a 1646 Tokay, and as he drew the cork, he wept.
Thank Evans for Len.