Still mulling over the death last week of Aussie wine champion, Len Evans, I was reminded of his “winner takes all” view of life in an obituary by Brian Stonier of Stonier Wines in Victoria.

Len created his own ‘Theory Of Consumption’ some years ago. I think it’s still relevant today and briefly, here it is:

“There’s an awful lot of wine in the World but there’s also a lot of awful wine. No sensible person drinks to excess, therefore, any one person can only drink a certain amount in a lifetime.”

“To make the most of the time left to you, you must start by calculating your total future capacity. One bottle a day is 365 bottles a year. If your life expectancy is another 30 years there are only 10,950 bottles ahead of you, or 5 bottles a week by 30 years equals 7,800 bottles to drink”.

“People who say you can’t drink the good stuff all the time are talking rubbish: You must drink good stuff all the time. Every time you drink a bottle of inferior wine it’s like smashing a superior bottle against the wall; the pleasure is lost forever – you can’t get that bottle back. There are people who build up huge cellars, most of which they have no hope of drinking. They are foolish in over-estimating their capacity, but they err on the right side and their friends love them”.

“What part is wine in your life? 10%? Therefore, 10% of your income should be spent on wine”

I have no doubt he practised this wonderful theory himself.

Thanks Brian for reminding me.