Property developer-cum-wine investor, Sam Castelli, has brought forward plans to expand his company’s wine contracting business, Mt Shadforth Contract Crush, following strong demand from grape growers.
Mr Castelli’s Castelli Group has bought additional wine tanks and storage equipment as part of an expansion of the Denmark facility that will increase its production capacity by about 30 per cent to 700 tonnes.
The property was developed by jailed lawyer Rohan Skea prior to the Castelli Group’s acquisition about two years ago.
Mr Castelli said he had always intended to expand the winery’s crushing capacity but had not anticipated doing so until 2009-10.
“We have experienced very good demand from growers in the region and some from the east coast,” Mr Castelli said.
Last year, Mt Shadforth Contract Crush processed fruit for about a dozen growers.
The additional capacity will provide capacity for the group to crush grapes for about four more growers. Mr Castelli said the group would invest in a bottling plant next year, which would complete plans to become a full-service grape processing business.
“We are not like the wineries that do contract winemaking as an add-on; they are interested in making their wine first,” Mr Castelli said.
“We are focused on making the wine for [growers] and will have everything here from crushing to bottling to dry storage.
“People can deliver the fruit, we will bottle it under their brand and store it until they are ready to despatch it.”
Mr Castelli, co-founder of United Group, said he was spending a substantial amount of money increasing the capacity of the business.
