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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-10-27 Daily Xml
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PATRITTI WINERY

Mr SIBBONS (Mitchell) (15:43): In the heart of suburban Mitchell, in Dover Gardens, a stone's throw away from the retail mecca of Marion shopping centre, sits a remarkable family business: G. Patritti & Co Pty Ltd. These winemakers and distillers have been part of the fabric of the humble south-western suburbs since 1926, when Giovanni Patritti started the business, operating for the first 21 years without electricity.

In those days, Patritti sourced grapes from his surrounding vineyards to make one dry white—a hock—and one dry red—a claret—which was very popular with the Italian community, as far afield as Queensland. In the years since, those growing up locally have childhood memories of mum or dad taking the sherry flagon to Patritti for a refill of a quality product at a reasonable price. Some customers have been buying there for more than 50 years.

These days, Giovanni's grandson, James Mungall, and his fellow winemaker, Ben Heide, produce almost 60 lines from grapes sourced from 30 growers across the South Australian region. However, Patritti's still manages three vineyards, including the Marion council-owned vines on Oaklands Road, and all the lines still come out of Giovanni's original cellars on Clacton Road, including sparkling, fortifieds, and even non-alcoholic wines and juices.

The modest pricing remains, but the results of James' and Ben's labour are now being exported to 15 countries from Vietnam, China and India to Sweden, the US and African nations. Just last week Patritti's big, bold 2009 merlot took the Winegrapes Australia McLaren Vale Wine Show by storm, winning a major trophy at that prestigious event, and bottled under Patritti's Blewitt Springs Estate range.

The winery's first domestically released merlot, it beat 39 other contenders in the best McLaren Vale single red varietal by earning an excellent score of 18.5 out of 20 from an international judging panel in a top field, often better known for pricier lines. The gold medal that came with the victory was one of 23 medals won this year by the winery at wine shows around Australia, but it is by far its biggest success. Despite enjoying the accolades and the excitement, director Ines Patritti acknowledges that the win has brought great excitement to the company, and they are very passionate about the production of wines in their Dover Gardens winery.

I wish to congratulate and toast the success of James, Ben, Ines and fellow second-generation company management, John and Geoff Patritti, not only for their McLaren Vale trophy, but also for the wines they produce each year and the enjoyment they bring to their customers both around the world and in my electorate of Mitchell. I am sure Giovanni Patritti would be proud of their efforts.

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