Tony Love awarded SA Legend of the Vine 2018

Tony Love, wine expert, wine judge and long term wine writer for ‘The Advertiser’ newspaper, was announced as the South Australian Wine Communicators of Australia (WCA) Legend of the Vine for 2018 at the Royal Adelaide Wine Show Lunch last Friday 28th September.

Love has received this honor in recognition of his outstanding contribution and service to the Australian and South Australian wine industry over the past 30 or more years.

This award also marks the last day he will be a member of The Advertiser Food, Wine and Lifestyle Team. Love, who has been the long-standing voice-of-wine at the newspaper is set to go his own way and dip into a new adventure in wine.

Known as an industry gentlemen blessed with solid dose of professional humor, Love is well liked and respected amongst his peers and has enjoyed his life as a professional in the wine business immensely. Tasting hundreds of wines a week might sound like a dream job for some, but for Tony Love this has been the reality of his daily grind. A grind he has enjoyed tremendously and takes very seriously, all the while always acknowledging the joy of what he is living and experiencing through his words.

Over his 30+ year tenure as a wine writer and wine judge for News Corp Australia he estimates he has opened and tasted about 100 wines per week which amounts to tens of thousands over his career.

“It’s a weird job to do,” says Love of his work as a full time wine expert and writer and one that he describes as a privilege, a huge responsibility and a “…pretty awesome, daunting exercise.”

Angus Barnes, WCA Chair reflects on the announcement,
“In his career, Tony has had a consistent and vast impact on the Australian wine industry. Reading his words each week has become the norm for many wine enthusiasts. His wealth of knowledge and entertaining way of expressing each wine a reliable go-to for wine makers, wine growers and wine lovers alike. The industry will miss his weekly musings but will look forward with eagerness to his new chapter.”

Tony Love is the fifth person to achieve legend status in South Australia and he joins his fellow wine colleagues and professionals Brian Walsh (2017), d’Arry Osbourne (2016), Bill Hardy (2015) and Patrick Iland (2014).

Source: Winetitles