Winemaking

The winemaking principles taught to us by our father, uncle and grandfather continue to guide Castelli Estate today. 

Firstly, our wines pay homage to the land. We grow Chardonnay and Pinot Noir on our estate, where the vines thrive in the deep rich Denmark soils and are cooled by the afternoon breeze off the Southern Ocean. We have also nurtured relationships with growers throughout the Great Southern region of Western Australia. We favour vineyards with a northerly aspect to maximise fruit flavour while retaining acidity. 

Secondly, our wines pay respect to the craft. We make elegant, fresh, fruit-forward wines that respect the natural attributes of the varietal. We intervene only as needed: although that should never be mistaken for complacency. The foundation of our winemaking philosophy lies in attention to detail and the relentless pursuit of quality. 

Next, we pay regard to our name. In San Giorgio our family hand-presses and hand-turns the fruit, ensuring the flavours are preserved and celebrated and resulting in a soft and well-rounded mouthfeel. At our world-class winery in Western Australia, we still hand-press our wines several days earlier than the norm in reverence to the Castelli family tradition. Our wines are Italian by nature – shareable and utterly enjoyable. 

Finally, we pay tribute to you. The wine drinker. Our wines have won awards, medals and trophies and have received critical acclaim. And yet the real satisfaction lies in knowing our wines are being enjoyed as they were intended – around the family table with food, stories and laughter. 

Our Chief Winemaker is Andrew Vesey, who has held the role since 2020. Andrew sources fruit from grape growers across the region as well as from our estate vineyard. 

With more than 20 years’ experience, Andrew has travelled across the globe to develop and refine his viticultural and winemaking skills. His work experience takes in France, Portugal, Italy, New Zealand, the north-east of Victoria and 10 years in Western Australia’s Great Southern. 

Andrew’s winemaking philosophy is centred around the vineyard. He identifies the unique attributes of a site and adjusts his winemaking techniques to suit. In his role as Chief Winemaker for Castelli Estate, Andrew is focused on crafting wines with fresh fruit flavours balanced with acidity and depth of flavour.

Gentle, minimal and targeted approach for each of style of wine to be produced, winemaking starts in the vineyard for each product and sites are graded prior to harvest to allow the winemaking stream to clear upon fruit entering the winery, juices are handled gently to avoid excessive fining and ferments managed with predominantly organic sources of nitrogen to allow both cultured and wild yeasts to achieve maximum aromatic, flavour and texture potential.