The antithesis of McLaren vale’s slick, mainstream, big-turnover cellar doors, Foggo conjures up crafty, unaffected and handmade vibes, with small-batch wines to match. So unassuming is the cellar door here, that you might think you’ve made a wrong turn and driven into someone’s front yard. Inside the low-slung brick structure is an equally modest brick-and-timber tasting room with a compact bar and a chesterfield or two – a couple of easy chairs out the front the only outward indication that you’re here to try some wine.
But what wine! Handcrafted from Foggo’s compact 20-acre holding, sustaining some of McLaren Vale’s oldest and gnarliest-looking vines, Foggo’s shiraz, cab sav, grenache and chardonnay are rich and full-bodied, textured by the French and American oak barrels they’ve been stored in. For something different, ask about a sticky tasting flight of Foggo’s excellent fortifieds (a tawny, topaque and fortified white). Tastings start at $10. Weekends only; call ahead to make sure somebody’s around.
