De Bortoli Wines Griffith

De Bortoli Wines at Bilbul is one of the Riverina's most significant wine addresses — a family operation with nearly a century of history behind it and a reputation built on some of Australia's most distinctive dessert wines. Founded in 1928 by Italian migrants Vittorio and Giuseppa De Bortoli, the winery has grown across three generations into one of the country's largest family-owned wine producers, while remaining genuinely rooted in the region where it began.

The cellar door reflects that longevity. There's a relaxed, unpretentious quality to the place that comes from decades of welcoming visitors rather than staging an experience for them.

The Wines

De Bortoli's name is synonymous with botrytis dessert wine in Australia. The Riverina's climatic conditions — warm days, cooling autumn nights, and the moisture influence of the Murrumbidgee River — create near-ideal conditions for the development of Botrytis cinerea, the noble rot that concentrates sugars and complexity in semillon grapes. De Bortoli is credited with pioneering this style in the region, and their botrytis semillon remains the benchmark against which others are measured.

Beyond the dessert wines, the cellar door pours Riverina shiraz and semillon across the core range. The warm continental climate and rich alluvial soils suit both varieties — the growing season concentrates flavour, while cooler nights through autumn help preserve the acidity that keeps the wines balanced.

Cellar Door Experience

Tastings are available for both casual drop-ins and booked groups, covering De Bortoli's core range with the botrytis wines as a natural highlight. The atmosphere is welcoming and informal, suited to first-time visitors and long-standing fans alike.

Winery and vineyard tours run alongside tastings, offering a proper look at the production facilities and the history of the operation. For visitors who want more than a pour at the counter, combining a tour with lunch makes for a complete afternoon. Allow two to three hours if you're planning to do both.

Food and Dining

An on-site restaurant provides dining matched to the De Bortoli range, and picnic platters are available for those who'd rather eat at their own pace. The wine shop carries the full range at cellar door prices, which makes it worth browsing before you leave — particularly for the dessert wines, which are well suited to taking home.

The Vineyard

The Riverina sits in inland New South Wales, shaped by the Murrumbidgee River system and a warm continental climate. Summers are long and hot, which builds ripeness across red and white varieties alike. The cooler nights through the growing season maintain acidity, and the autumn humidity along the river creates the conditions necessary for botrytis to develop across semillon blocks. De Bortoli's established rootstock and canopy management have been refined to suit these seasonal patterns over nearly a century of production.

History

Vittorio and Giuseppa De Bortoli arrived from Italy and established the winery in 1928, identifying the Riverina's agricultural potential at a time when the region was still finding its footing as a wine-producing area. The family expanded steadily through subsequent generations, building De Bortoli into a national presence while keeping ownership entirely within the family. The winery's development of botrytis dessert wine production in the Riverina stands as one of the more significant contributions to Australian wine history, bringing international-style noble rot wines into a region better known for table wine volume.

Getting There

The winery is located in Bilbul, roughly 30 kilometres south of Griffith town centre — about a 30-minute drive. The approach is on sealed roads and the site is accessible for caravans and larger vehicles. There's no direct public transport connection, so a private vehicle or an organised tour is the practical option. Griffith is the nearest major town for accommodation and services.

Visitor Tips

• Best time to visit: March to May and September to October offer comfortable temperatures and, during autumn, the added interest of vintage activity in the vineyards
• Avoid midsummer if you can: January and February are genuinely hot in the Riverina; if visiting then, plan for early mornings and indoor time
• Harvest season (late February to April) brings the winery to life with vintage events worth checking ahead for
• Budget two to three hours to fit in a tasting, tour, and meal without rushing
• The botrytis dessert wines deserve proper attention — arrive with time to taste through them rather than treating them as an afterthought
• Groups and caravans are well accommodated, but large groups should notify the winery in advance
• Weekday visits outside school holidays offer a quieter experience