Self-proclaimed Italian Francophile, Giorgio Dalla Cia, is as much part of South Africa’s wine legacy as Danie de Wet or Peter Finlayson. After moving to South Africa with his family in 1974 from Fruili in Northern Italy, Giorgio devoted his experience as a distiller and knowledge as a qualified oenologist to the Meerlust Estate for 25 years. Here, together with Nico Myburgh they pioneered South Africa’s Bordeaux Style Blends, including the legendary Meerlust Rubicon.
In 2003 Giorgio and his son George, opened their own third-generation Grappa distillery under the family name which took to producing their own wines in 2004 with the same Franco-Italian outlook that had influenced Giorgio from the beginning. He recalls that his love of French wine started when he was sent to Cap d’Antibes on the French Riviera for two summers to improve his French (and to show-off his girlfriends at fancy restaurants). "I didn’t know much about French wine, coming from Friuli, and the only way to know if I was getting the best wine was by ordering only the wines listed with 4 or 5 stars. I was surprised and impressed, and to this day I adore French wines because of their quality and their tradition.”
After almost a lifetime producing grappa and wine, Giorgio received the Living Legend Award at last year’s 2016 Veritas Awards for his accomplishments and service to the South African wine industry. Only adding to his already impressive list of achievements which include the IWSC Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Trophy (for the best blended red wine in the world) for his Meerlust Rubicon 2001, the 2005 title of Winemaker of the Year he was awarded in his home province of Friuli, as well as having been knighted by the Italian President in 1986 for his groundbreaking achievements in the South African wine industry.
Together Giorgio and George carry on the legacy of making Grappa and elegant, refined wines that blend a classic Stellenbosch style with Italian flair - all of which are now available to ship immediately via Port2Port. Which, you may have deduced, means that we are delighted to welcome Dalla Cia as our latest MarketPlace Partner, the perfect start to a new year in our opinion.
