The annual Sea & Vines Festival has already come and gone; and we decided to spend our day with De Lisio Wines, located in the picturesque McLaren Vale. It was a great day, filled with food, music and of course, exceptional wine.

Founded in 2002, De Lisio Wines is a family owned and operated boutique winery. They maintain traditional methods and produce unique award winning wines. We selected five of their best to try on the day.

The 2015 Honeypot Sparkling Moscato is a soft light-bodied wine with a fruity aroma. I found the taste to be reminiscent of passionfruit, honey and melon. If you enjoy the sweeter things in life, then the Honeypot is what you’ve been looking for; it was my personal favourite too!

Next up, we have a new release 2017 Sangiovese Rose, which is a French style ruby-red colour. It is crisp and medium-bodied, with notes of green melon, tart cherry and pink grapefruit.

The 2017 Argento Pinot Grigio is another refreshing new release, with its fruit sourced from the Adelaide Hills. The wine itself inhabits a bouquet of honeysuckle, wildflower, melon and pear, with a light citrus finish.

Now, let’s venture into the reds category. First up, we tried the 2013 Catalyst Shiraz Grenache, from the black label range. With a beautiful opaque purple colour, this blend offers a nose of spices, pepper and blue and blackberry liqueur. It is more of a full-bodied wine, with an oaky finish.

The 2012 Kristina Shiraz is one of De Lisio’s premium wines. This full bodied elegant Shiraz is rich crimson purple with subtle tannins. Tastings of spice box, pepper and blueberries are quite prominent too. Velvety aromas of mocha chocolate and coffee as also showcased in this gorgeous red wine. This Shiraz is the perfect red to keep you warm on those cold winter nights.

“Winemaking is a living and growing craft, and the entire De Lisio family is excited to contribute their unique skills and ideas, to your experience.”

Don’t worry; there was plenty of food too! The Chunky Beef and Shiraz Pie was a crowd favourite. This hearty beef pie was beautifully rich and melted in the mouth. Quality beef and Shiraz worked well together to create the perfect pie!

The Beer Battered Garfish was perfectly crisp and served with beautifully golden potato chips, which would pair well with the Pinot Grigio. You can’t go wrong with good ol’ fish and chips!

The flourless house-made Orange and Almond Cake was a delicious dense treat with lovely levels of tannin too.

We finished up with the Two-Stack Buttermilk Pancakes drizzled with maple syrup. These light fluffy pancakes certainly hit the spot.

Make sure to contact De Lisio Wines to book your next tasting. You can email them at contact@delisiowines.com.au or call them on 0423 146 217. Catering options are also available; feel free to contact the winery and enquire now!

Also, some exciting news! Their pop up cellar door will be at the visitor centre until 24th June!

Words by Silvana Weyerhauser-Maher