If hospitality had its own secret society, Ross Stevens would be high priest — the sort of man who greets you with that rarest of things: genuine enthusiasm paired with encyclopaedic knowledge that doesn’t make you feel small. At The Conservatory Bar, the wine list isn’t just a menu — it’s an atlas of memories and regions, curated with a passion that traces back to childhood afternoons spent poring over his grandfather’s cellar notes in the West Country of the UK.
This December marked the first anniversary of The Conservatory’s bold new chapter at 21 Lake Street — affectionately coined by regulars as the grown-ups’ living room — where dark timber, leather lounges, and a hushed sense of occasion meet an 800-bottle wine library recently awarded two glasses by the Australian Wine List of the Year Awards.
But Ross doesn’t just collect bottles — he animates them. His fortnightly tastings are theatrical without artifice, inviting novices and aficionados alike to throw down old assumptions and discover unexpected favourites. And while his command of terroir and vintage might be formidable, it’s his warmth — that inclusive, mischievous encouragement to try something new — that keeps Cairns coming back.
In a city fringed with reef and rainforest, Ross has created a space where evenings are measured in sips and stories — and every glass feels like a shared secret worth toasting.
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