The 12 successful applicants for the 17th Len Evans Tutorial, to be held in the Hunter Valley, 6–10 November, have been announced.
Each year, the Len Evans Tutorial welcomes professionals in wine, vineyard, hospitality and sales from across Australia to develop their wine appreciation with the nation’s top wine experts over the week.
The Tutorial program is designed to define the demands of wine show judging and to define quality by exposing the scholars to the great wine styles of the world.
A team of five tutors will put the scholars through their paces in what James Halliday has described as “the most exclusive wine school in the world.” The tutors include: James Halliday, Ian McKenzie, Iain Riggs, Gary Steel, Michael Hill Smith, Tyson Stelzer, Samantha Connew and Randal Pollard.
Many of the greatest, rarest and oldest wines will be opened, tasted and scrutinised by the high-calibre 2017 Len Evans Tutorial Scholars —
- Tessa Brown — Vignerons Schmolzer & Brown, proprietor/vigneron
- Adam Carnaby — Seppelt Wines, senior winemaker
- Sandrine Gimon — Rymill Coonawarra, senior winemaker
- Jeremy Prideaux — City Wine Shop, restaurant manager
- Kavita Faiella — Voyageur Selections, founder & director
- Adrian Sparks — McWilliams Wines, senior winemaker
- Paul Hotker — Bleasdale Vineyards, senior winemaker
- Natalie Cleghorn — Yalumba, winemaker
- Julian Grounds — McHenry Hohnen Vintners, head winemaker/GM
- Pablo Theodorus — Stanley Bridge Tavern, GM/publican/co-director
- Justin Purser — Best’s Wines, chief winemaker
- Ben Portet — Dominique Portet, winery winemaker
Scholars from the past 16 Tutorials are now gracing the judging benches at all major wine shows across Australia.
Image: Len Evans Tutorial