“We did a hop around all of the wineries in close proximity of Casa Freschi. Honestly, Casa Freschi was the best of them all! Rolling vineyard hills surround the cellar door and the (all organic!) wine is exceptional, as was the tasting experience. The owner, David himself hosts the tastings over the weekends here, which was both personal and enlightening. If you’re coming to this region do yourself a favour and don’t miss this place!” *****

“A real intimate experience that is equally wholesome and educational.
An honest, humble experience that we really appreciated.” *****

“Owner and winemaker, David, is a brilliant host. Highly recommend the tasting flight – and we bought one of each to take home. Minimal intervention winemaking, the family-planted estate fruit speaks for itself – the whites and Nebbiolo growing around the cellar door, and the reds grown at their first property at Langhorne Creek. The vines and winery are part of the great story of winemaking in Australia, and the warm fire and brilliant views are worth the visit alone.” *****

“Great tasting experience. David is very personable and has deep wine knowledge. Great expressions of the terroir through wild ferments, while still being extremely clean. I couldn’t fault a single wine. Sensational spot – Casa Freschi is an asset to the region.” *****

“Best Chardonnay I have ever tasted.” *****

“Frikin cool place! So serene and secluded, wines are exceptional. David, the winemaker is relaxed, enthusiastic and welcoming. Totally recommend!” *****

“Charming hospitality and such gorgeous views!” *****

“Beautiful cellar door in a lovely spot. Wine’s are amazing and winemaker David is passionate about telling you how they are made and his philosophy. Buy a cheese place and enjoy the fire.” *****

Meet David Freschi of Casa Freschi in Ashton in our Adelaide Hills. Our region has long been part of David’s story, a story that epitomises the diversity, sustainable focus and artisan trade that makes our Hills so special

With a background studying winemaking at Roseworthy, David went on a globe trot; spending time in the trade in California, Italy and New Zealand, where he accrued a wealth of knowledge and experience.

Working for some of the bigger players in the industry, David soon realised how he didn’t want to do things and instead sought to be the nurturing custodian of a piece of land, while managing everything from winemaking to business admin when Casa Freschi was born in 1998.

Having planted red varieties on his father’s land at Langhorne Creek, David looked to the Adelaide Hills to plant white varieties, searching for the highest slopes he could possibly find. Soon came his ‘Altezza’ vineyard, an ex-apple orchard with beautiful soil and wonderful slopes in Ashton, now also home to the Casa Freschi Cellar Door and Winery. Altezza is unique not only in its elevation, but also in its high density vines at 8000 vines per hectare.

David’s wines are not just single vineyard wines, but made from batches of fruit that each reflect a single block within the single vineyard. As he notes ‘Staying intimate with the parcels of fruit is important to me, and ensuring they are completely nurtured every step of the way. The grapes are harvested then wild fermented here on the vineyard, then into barrels in the cellar on the vineyard.’

It is important to him that the wines have ‘a trueness to them’. Truly estate grown, with what is made each year what the vineyard yields. Nothing more.

Visit Casa Freschi cellar door or look at staying at the point between his two sweeping blocks, the ‘Espira’ private eco-luxury single vineyard retreat.

No question it’s a pretty special way to experience a beautiful part of the world

A complex, convincing Hills chardonnay showing a composed set of citrus, peachy stone fruits, almond, nougat and barrel-derived flavours. Juicy on the palate headlining assertive acidity, more peach and grilled-nuts intensity with a crunchy, bright resolve. 94pts Drink 2022-2029 $55 Jeni Port, James Halliday Wine Companion 2023

David Freschi makes wine from Langhorne Creek and Adelaide Hills grapes. Being the son of Italian migrants, his winemaking is strongly Italian influenced.
This unusual and quite developed style of nebbiolo has a medium to light brick-red colour with an orange-tawny rim. The bouquet is earthy and meaty, with an ‘animal’ overtone among the complexity of dried herbs and dried flowers. There’s a note of smoked meats, as you’d smell behind the counter in a deli. It’s medium-bodied and very intense, with focus and energy throughout the palate. There’s a suspicion of volatility which doesn’t harm it. A wine of character rather than pristine, clinical squeakiness. (Screwcap) 90pts Buy of the week Huon Hooke, Cellar Talk, 24 May 2022

“Lifted nose with red fruits, tea leaf, wild strawberry and menthol. Rich palate with good acidity, a savoury note and tight sinewy tannins. Blue fruits shine through the finish. Fascinating take on Nebbiolo! Lots to enjoy (AC) 16.5 pts Drink 2022 to 2027 Jancis Robinson

“David Freschi is a thoughtful winemaker, his wines mirroring his quietly confident personality. That Freschi is just releasing his 2019 flagship chardonnay tells of his patience – and it’s well worth the wait. Subtlety is the key here with a bouquet of grapefruit and white nectarine mingled with almond biscotti. Texture is paramount with good structure, ample flavour and an energetic finale.” $55 Best Buys over $35 Peter Bourne, Australian Gourmet Traveller Wine Magazine Feb/Mar 2022

“An inviting Nebbiolo that plays on the grape variety’s fresher, lively fruit elements over tannin firmness and structure. Cherry and cranberry juice meets brined green olive notes with a light dusting of peppery spice. It sits high in the palate, crisp and lively, delivering a wine that feels just under medium weight and raring to go right now. 13.0% ” $30 93pts Most outstanding new releases Mike Bennie, Wine Business Magazine Jan/Feb 2022

“Genuine interest in this wine – a blend of clones and parcels from a high Ashton vineyard, whole-bunch pressed, barrel fermented with wild yeast; the wine sat on lees for 9 months. It’s deeply layered and expresses poached apple and some orange/mandarin tang, with medium to fuller textures and a subtle mineral feel in the finish” 91pts Tony Love, Wine Companion, Mar 2021

“This is excellent grigio, a category of wine that is among the most exciting of the contemporary Australian wine-scape. Excellent because it melds ripe, quenching sensations of baked apple and nashi pear gelato with a chewy phenolic riff, adding to the textural equation. hand picked and wild-fermented in wood with time on lees, care has been taken. This is not complex. But that is far from the point. What it is, is a dangerously easy wine to drink of balance, joy and versalitity across many a table. Delicious! ” 94pts Ned Goodwin, Wine Companion

“Casa Freschi’s baby Nebbiolo. Not a serious price but a serious wine from a long established vineyard in Langhorne Creek. Must be the best sub $30 Neb in Australia?” Cloudwine

“Fruit from a single vineyard with a multiplicity of clone and rootstock combinations. Fermented in small open fermenters, aged 10 months in seasoned French barriques. Noticeably pale in colour, even for nebbiolo. Earthy, savoury aromas with just a hint of rose-petal. Soft and approachable on the palate, finishing with a sour cherry like astringency. Drinking well now.” 92pts Steven Creber – Wine Companion.

Usually something unexpected for riesling, which I like. White balsamic and white pepper whiffs over blackcurrant, green apple and bread dough notes. The palate similar, tart and tangy, wild-edged and ultra zingy, salted cashews in the mix, juicy and slick but has lovely, fine grip too. Great feel here. A moreish, gourmand kind of experience.” 93pts Mike Bennie, Winefront Oct 20

Casa Freschi Ragazzi Nebbiolo 2017: Beautiful sweet floral fruit aromas leading to lovely lingering flavours of licorice and spices and laced with crisp acidity and firm savoury tannins. Rating  4.5 stars

Casa Freschi Nebbiolo 2016: Mushroom/forest floor fruit aromas and a flavoursome complexity of licorice, leather and spices with a firm tannin structure Rating  4.5 stars

James Halliday Wine Companion 2021 – 5 star winery

La Signorina 2019 : A field blend of 44% riesling, 37% gewurztraminer and a splash of pinot bianco and grigio; all hand harvested before wild fermentation in French barriques and bottled without fining or filtration. Organic, sure, but more intuitive; more hands-off. Bravo! This is Alsace on steriods. Far better than so much wine from there. Apple, spice, quince, grape, lychee and yet, despite the aromatic fireworks, this mid-weighted beauty is more about textural detail flowing long while etching flavours into every crevice across the palate. A wonderful wine. Rating  95pts, Special value Drink to 2023

Profondo 2017 : A blend of 75% cabernet sauvignon and 25% shiraz; fermented naturally, 28 months in used French barriques. This is classy, rich but supple. Powerful, but light of touch across the palate, the tannins nicely polymerised and mocha-creamy. Delicate poise demonstrated across a plume of truffled black fruits, violet, anise and sage. A fine drink, with my bets on earlier to mid-term enjoyment. Rating  94pts Drink to 2027

2016 La Signorina
“Wild ferment, barrel ferment, aromatic white varieties. Textural, generous and bright white. Saline notes in ripe apple, stone fruits, pear and mandarin citrus characters. Lots of flavour and personality, deliciousness, vitality and complexity. It’s just really good – you want to drink more, you want to know more, and it marches its own beat.” 93pts Mike Bennie

2018 Chardonnay
“Interesting style from Casa Freschi here. Saline, nutty and sake-like, yeasty, some white fleshed fruit under that, plus a handful of white flowers. It’s all hazelnut and saline things, fine cool acidity, some creaminess with it, some Japanese ginger, and a long finish. Does it’s own thing, but does it well” 94pts Gary Walsh

2017 La Signora
“Ripe berries, mocha and ferrous scents. Thick set in the palate, layered with brick dust, mocha, ferrous character and raspy iron filing tannins. Bloody, bit lip finish. Some dried cherry and cranberry in the mix amongst it…Serious wine” 92pts Mike Bennie

A statement wine, particularly with its coursing ropes of grippy tannin and high rose petal and earthy perfume. The quality of fruit seems to sing here, showing plenty of layers and interest overall. It drinks firmly and with chew, so time in decanter seems apt, likewise a cellar. A very savoury red wine with strong character of the variety, done well. 94pts Mike Bennie, WBM Jan/Feb 2020

90pts The Real Review Oct 2019

“Casa Freschi handles the Italian-origin varieties and styles with experience and aplomb, hence no surprise that this textural, grassy, pear-juice-in-mineral-water-feeling wine is an excellent buy. It’s the kind of wine that drinks a charm but feels a bit classy too. A ripper drink.” Most outstanding new releases 93pts Mike Bennie, Wine Business Magazine July/Aug 2019

Casa Freschi – 5 star winery

La Signorina 2015 – The tightly spaced vineyard (8000 vines/ha) is made up of riesling, gewurztraminer, chardonnay and pinot gris, a figurative look back 1000+ years to when tight planting and field blends were normal. Riesling and gewurztraminer rule the roost here, giving the wine a strongly textured and flavoured array of lemon juice and zest. Screwcap. 13%alc Rating 95 To 2028 $32 Special value

Nebbiolo 2016 – This is from the 17yr old plantings at vintage. 30 months in used French oak puncheons. Announces the variety immediately on the bouquet with aromas of rose petal, warm red earth and roasted nuts. Flavours of sour cherry and cranberry gently saturate the palate, and then authentically grippy tannins take over to prolong the finish in convincing style. Cork. 13.5%alc Rating 95 To 2032 $55

Ragazzi Pinot Grigio 2018 – 26% barrel fermentation (7%mlf) and 8 months on lees has invested the wine with the complexity one might expect from a gris but not a grigio. Regardless, the result is a high quality wine with a smoky, tangy set of flavours finishing with citrus on the clean, fresh aftertaste. Screwcap. 12%alc Rating 94 To 2020 $28 Special value

Malbec 2016 – Vines planted in ’72 with ‘ancient’ (obviously successful) clones, an enviable resource for winemaker David Freschi who has combined complexity with drinkability here. There’s red and black berries, dark chocolate, coffee and dried herb to be found as you smell and taste, the flavours filling the palate and velvety tannin guiding it to the finish. Delicious. Cork. 14%alc Rating 94 To 2028 $55

David Freschi is the son of Italian parents who emigrated from the Veneto region to Australia in the 1950s. His Nebbiolo is a combinatoin of 10 clones on a variety of different rootstocks planted in limestone based soil. The grapes are foot crushed. fermented with wild yeasts and left to age in seasoned French oak puncheons. It’s all strawberry and white pepper on the nose, while the palate features rosehip, red berries and rather tame tannins. There’s a lovely fine, sandy texture on the finish. Drink 2019-2024, 90pts Michaela Morris, “Italy in Australia:setting down roots”, Decanter Magazine June 2019

David Freschi keeps delivering quality wines. Take his latest La Signora, made from 70% nebbiolo with the balance equal parts of shiraz and malbec from the Langhorne Creek vineyard, planted in 1972. Nebbiolo was a later planting and, while it may seem too hot for the variety, La Signora proves it’s not. Dried sour cherry, fading rose petal and exotic spices dominate the nose with gently persistent tannins driving the palate. The flavours are classic nebbiolo, with the shiraz and malbec adding depth. Peter Bourne, Best Buys over $30, AGT Wine Magazine Apr/May 2019

Selected for Qantas International Business Class Flights, March/April 2019

“Syrah seems aspirational in suggestion as the wine is fuller bodied than medium, richer and riper in fruit character, and shows the headlining regional character of saltbush. It’s lovely though, warm and inviting, luscious but in control. Good, good.” 14%alc. Most outstanding new releases 93pts, Mike Bennie, Wine Business Magazine

Ranked #2 Pinot Grigio in Australia by Huon Hooke, the Real Review

Malbec has found a very happy home amongst the dry creek-beds of Langhorne Creek.

Here’s one of the best examples getting around.

This powerhouse wine picked up the highest score in the country for a Malbec taking a massive 96 points from James Halliday. It’s the first time that a straight Malbec has been made a Casa Freschi and it’s a ripper.

Want a big, brooding Malbec for the dinner table? Here it is.

Only 50 dozen made.

A different drop

Casa Freschi Adelaide Hills Chardonnay 2016
“The selection of small parts of the high density 1.6ha vineyard has given this wine a flying start, the vinification exacting and amplifying the intensity of the fruit. Structure, texture and fruit all combine to provide a palate of great length and urgency.” Screwcap. 13% alc. Rating 96 To 2029 $55. Special value

Casa Freschi Langhorne Creek Malbec 2015
“The beautiful hue of crimson rimmed by royal purple underlines the symbiosis between Langhorne Creek and malbec. This sends a silky, sumptuous message of pure plum (damson, blood, satsuma – you name it) flowing across the palate, and no difficult questions about the finish or aftertaste.” Cork. 14% alc. Rating 96 To 2035 $55 Special Value

Casa Freschi Langhorne Creek Nebbiolo 2015
“Bombards you with questions from start to finish, but I’m prepared to put my neck on the block here. The perfumed rosewater and spice bouquet sets the path for a finely detailed texture and structure of the palate that cuts across any question about the modest alcohol.” Cork. 13.5% alc. Rating 95 To 2028 $55

Casa Freschi Ragazzi Langhorne Creek Nebbiolo 2016
“Well hello Langhorne Creek, despite being the bambino Nebbiolo this has plenty to enjoy. The nose offers bold ripe blackberries, red earth spice, a hint of pepper and bright red cherry. Mouthfeel is rather succulent, combining cooked strawberry with warm dates and soft velvety tannins. It has varietal character, balanced acidity and generosity of flavour – a real crowd pleaser.” Screwcap. 13% alc. Rating 95 To 2026 $28 Special Value

Casa Freschi Ragazzi Adelaide Hills Chardonnay 2017
“The usual attention to detail has resulted in a complex but perfectly balanced wine with crystal clear varietal expression firmly placed in the driver’s seat. Even with the low alcohol, the flavours are of white peach, nectarine and creamy fig, citrus appearing with the acidity.”  Screwcap. 12.5% alc. Rating 94 To 2029 $28 Special Value

“Elegant wine here. Though it says 14 percent on the bottle it feels more svelte, spicy and fine boned, and there’s plenty of flavour packed in. I like the bouquet, redolent of exotic spice, briar, the red berries, and how it replicates in that silky glide across the palate. Lovely wine.” Rating 93, Most outstanding new releases, Mike Bennie WBM Mar/Apr 2018.

“If you are looking to get familiar with Australian Nebbiolo, this is the perfect place to start.
Casa Freschi is a leading Australian producer of this tricky variety, making it differing styles, from easy drinking through to a more serious cellaring style.
The Ragazzi is the early drinking, more approachable version of Nebbiolo.
The tannins are soft, the fruit is juicy, everything dialled in for a Neb you can rip the top off and get stuck into. Comfortably one of the better Nebbiolos you will find in the country that doesn’t need a decade to show its best.” A different drop

“Casa Freschi is a wine producer to keep an eye on, with a range of wines that seems striking for their high quality and unique-feeling offering. This nebbiolo shows raspberry fruit scents with char and sweet earth characters, while the palate is chewy with ropes of thick tannin, dense with cherry-cola-esque fruit flavours. It should cellar well too.” Rating 93, Most outstanding new releases, Mike Bennie, Wine Business Magazine, Nov/Dec 2017

5 star winery  James Halliday Wine Companion 2018

Ragazzi Pinot Grigio 2016
“Hand-picked from a dry-grown vineyard at 580m, eight parcels whole-bunch pressed and separately fermented in French oak, aged on lees for 8 months, 10% undergoing mlf. Wines such as this are game changers: I have to concede that pinot gris is a high quality variety when given respect. Its power is explosive, the palate long and intense, citrus and pear entwined with sparkling acidity.” 95pts Drink to 2021, Special value

La Signora 2014
“70% nebbiolo, 15% each of shiraz and malbec, 22 individual parcels separately open-fermented with wild yeast, macerated for 3-4 weeks, matured for 18 months in used French oak. The bouquet is fragrant, spcy cherry/sour cherry expanding in the best way on a long medium-bodied palate. It’s interesting how nebbiolo dominates flavours, the other two varieties contributing more weight.” 95pts, Drink to 2030

Nebbiolo 2014
“21 plantings (10 clones) are destemmed and separately open-fermented with wild yeast, hand-plunged and macerated 2-3 weeks,matured in French oak puncheons for 18 months. Reflects the long experience of Casa Freschi with nebbiolo. Clear, light scarlet, it is super refined, with dusky red cherry/berry on the bouquet and finely structured palate alike. The balance, line and length are all good.” 94pts, Drink to 2029

“So much love and attention has gone into this wine, grown on the eastern slopes of Mt Lofty, picked in small batches to reflect a range of vine clones, ages and specific blocks, wild yeasts in play, maturation on grape and fermentation solids – all this is reflected in a generous mouthful of ripe melon and peach fruit flavours that mesh tightly in the palate with balancing acidity and texture. The purity here drives a wine of high class.” 95pts,  Tony Love, Top 100 Wines of 2017, Adelaide Advertiser 15 July 2017