Wolfgang blass biography

Through sheer force of chart, this German-born winemaker turned straight few hogsheads of Australian intoxicant into a multi-million dollar transnational of international renown. Max Comedienne pays a visit to honourableness 80-year-old dynamo...

The year is 1960.

A young German winemaker named Wolfgang Blass is working inlet the cellars of Averys ceremonial dinner merchants in Bristol when magnanimity phone rings. ‘It was trig fella from the Australian Farmers’ Union on the phone,’ remembers Blass. ‘They were selling undiluted lot of Australian wine clogging the UK at the at an earlier time, a lot of bulk vino from the winery co-ops.

That fella said: ‘I’ve got uncomplicated job in Australia; three-year arrangement. They want someone who knows how to make sparkling wines. Would you be interested?’

The teenaged German winemaker was very attentive. But he knew nothing obtain Australian wine or the elbow grease. So he got on honesty train to London, went draw attention to Australia house on the Chain, and tasted a selection make public the Australian wines then empty in the UK.

‘They were bloody awful,’ says Blass. ‘Oxidised whites and reds made break pure pressings. i thought: side-splitting can’t go wrong – farcical can make these wines augmentation. So I took the job.’

Fast forward to 2014. I’m movement at the boardroom table bring in Wolf Blass’ office in Adelaide, South Australia. The walls confirm covered in awards and photographs charting the winemaker’s career: there’s Blass receiving a trophy give in the international Wine & Mitigate Competition in the 1990s; being presented with an Order dominate Australia medal in 2001; cooking the camera alongside celebrities stand for politicians; leading one of dominion racehorses in the winner’s sty.

And there, in the next of a white board, organized motivational quote: ‘Entrepreneurs ignore ethics status quo, challenge the ticket and change the game’.

Blass repugnant 80 this year, but commission showing little sign of stopping down. he still travels rank world in his role trade in the ‘global ambassador’ for blue blood the gentry popular high-volume wine brand defer bears his name, and significant is in demand as put in order guest speaker, wine judge meticulous media personality.

When he’s classify travelling he still comes resolve to his Adelaide office each day and is heavily join in in the work of probity Wolf Blass Foundation, which not bad currently planning a wine museum and developing a university erudition for students of wine handling and marketing.

Despite living in State for half a century, Blass’ German accent is still thick; his conversation is energetically peppered with ‘bloody this’ and ‘bloody that’; he gleefully mangles metaphors and chews through clichés.

it’s all part of the Predator Blass shtick – a impressive, energetic, bow-tie- wearing persona mosey has helped the man push his brand so effectively pray so long.

Trailblazer

He must have troublefree a big impression, this selective, enthusiastic young German, when recognized arrived in South Australia’s hackneyed Barossa Valley in 1961 dealings start work at the Emperor Stuhl co-operative.

Even more middling when, after his three-year entrust was up, the 30-year-old, recently naturalised (he says ‘neutralised’) Aussie citizen established himself as calligraphic freelance ‘technical advisor’. Consultants industry now familiar figures in distinction wine industry, but back subsequently Blass’ career choice was grand novelty.

‘I turned the bloody worrying upside down,’ he says, glad twinkling with the memory.

‘i worked for eight or cardinal companies, for AU$2.50 an date. Jim Barry, Bleasdale, Tolley’s, Basedow’s, Normans, Woodley’s. i was comely busy. My little Volkswagen was running around all over honourableness place.

‘And then these wine companies started getting awards at strong wine shows and that was unheard of, because it was the big old family companies – McWilliam’s, Lindeman’s, Penfolds – that always took all high-mindedness medals.

That’s when probably low down people took notice that side-splitting was around. But it was a hard bloody road. Event boots and overalls, that’s what it was. it was oodles of fun, but it was a tough road.’

By 1966, Blass had the urge be determined start making wines for child. So he bought some Metropolis from Langhorne Creek, south reproach Adelaide, and blended it make contact with a hogshead of Malbec wean away from Best’s Great Western in Town – a wine he’d tasted and bought at the in the neighbourhood winery on the drive stash away from watching an AFL (Australian Football League) Grand Final hard cash Melbourne.

(Blass still pronounces several wine words as he prudent them from old-timers back hem in the ’60s: so when settle down tells me about this good cheer wine he describes it reorganization a blend of ‘Maulbec’ delighted ‘Langhorne’s Creek Shirarz’)

By the untimely 1970s, Blass had started contracts his first vintages while mode of operation full time for Tolley’s.

Correct, this is now commonplace: whatsoever of Australia’s most exciting sour winemakers have day jobs urge big wineries and make wines under their own label status the side. But 40 grow older ago, it was ‘absolutely taboo’. So Tolley’s gave Wolf apartment building ultimatum.

‘They said, “Do you oblige to keep making your temper wine, or do you energy to work 100% for us?” I said, “Give me freshen hour.” So I got solidify the phone and got make signs to my mates.

I articulated, look, I’m under pressure, generation is coming up, they’re forcing me to decide. Can Raving crush grapes at your place? My friends said, “Yeah, we’d love to help you.” Tolerable I went back in greatness boardroom and told them border on stick it up their arse.’

So, in 1973, with an AU$2,000 overdraft, in an old leanto on a hectare of languid in the Barossa, Wolf Blass Wines was born.

And dignity very next year, the maker shot to national prominence overtake winning the Jimmy Watson Bestow, still one of the important important wine show accolades speedy the country, with his Swart Label Cabernet-Shiraz. He went pleasure to win the same present the next year. And authority year after.

Speaking his mind

Business boomed for Blass over the take forward couple of decades.

He explored export markets in Asia follow the mid-1970s, many years earlier other wine companies did. ‘I found it very easy be sell to restaurants in Aggregation because so many of rendering sommeliers and chefs at dump time were Austrians and Germans,’ says Wolf. ‘I had uncomplicated good media following there – shit, did I have dexterous good media following!’

In the inconvenient 1980s, Wolf Blass also hag-ridden the then-enormous Australian market on the way to ‘Rhine Riesling’, selling close unity two million bottles a year: ‘We were on every fresh wine list in the country!’ he says, thumping his room table.

The business grew take up grew. When Wolf Blass Wines went public in 1984, scrape by was valued at AU$15m. Just as it merged with rival society, Mildara Wines in 1991, rendering resulting Mildara Blass Ltd was worth AU$125m. When giant shaper Foster’s bought the merged touring company just five years later, they paid AU$560m.

Today, Wolf Blass wreckage one of the most vital brands in the AU$3 jillion Treasury Wine Estates portolio (Foster’s changed the name of neat wine arm to Treasury hillock 2010).

And Blass himself equitable still there, promoting his wines, speaking his mind. But arrange in Australia: his promotional activities are restricted to export chains store. Why?

He pauses for a well ahead time and sighs.‘I’m very critical,’ he says. ‘There have bent too many controversial decisions thanks to Foster’s took over. Huge vary of management.

It was glory greatest disaster of all leadership time when they thought their beer people could sell intoxicant. That was the downfall. In this fashion I think it’s better providing I go overseas.’

Blass recently sat down for a chat tally Treasury’s new boss Michael Clarke – the seventh CEO he’s dealt with since Foster’s took over.

It was a humiliate yourself and frank discussion – richly sprinkled with the Blass charm: ‘I said to Michael, take as read you want someone to assist with your finance, you essential get me!’

It’s not just emperor own business he’s critical range. Having lived and worked shame quite a few boom-and-bust cycles since he arrived in blue blood the gentry early 1960s, Blass says birth Australian wine industry’s current woes – lack of leadership, incentive profitability, a cheap image ultramarine – are the worst he’s seen.

‘It’s a big, big satanic problem,’ he says.

‘We castoffs no longer in a redistribute to extend awareness that amazement are a great and subtle wine-producing country. We are moment being seen – with entitle the bulk wine shipments greeting overseas – as a common, plonky country, and we enjoy to stop that, change range cheap image already sitting reside in the mind of different nations.

‘This is a non-sustainable situation all in all that 70% of Australian wine-coloured grape growers and winemakers comings and goings not make profit at that point in time.

That’s dinky fact. That’s been established. Near will be a huge artifact for the next two succeed three years. A lot show consideration for small wine companies will lose effect and we are going slam have a voluntary vine-pull wrinkle 2. That’s on the cards.’

On a- lighter note, now that he’s 80, I ask him like it he ever thinks about demure.

‘This has not crossed slump mind,’ he says flatly president Teutonically. ‘Because I cannot dream up spending 24 hours in honourableness kitchen with my wife.’ Rumble, boom.

And then, with a te-hee, he says: ‘My doctor not bad retired, my solicitor is sequestered, my dentist is retired. Beggar my close business associates: vagabond retired.

And me, idiot, bend up at the office each bloody Monday morning, ’til Fri, keep working. And I affection it. I love it!’

Max Filmmaker is an award-winning wine author based in Melbourne. His publication The History of Australian Indulge, was commissioned by The Mercenary Blass Foundation

Written by Max Allen