Calabria Family Wines has spent more than 80 years evolving alongside the Australian wine industry. Now led by the third generation, the business is balancing tradition with innovation. Dae Hong writes.
The vehicle for growth lies in tradition for Calabria Family Wines.
Founded in 1945 by Francesco Calabria, the company began in the Riverina region of New South Wales. According to sales and marketing director and third-generation family member, Andrew Calabria, what started as homemade table wine for fellow European migrants transformed into a commercial operation.
“He came to Australia looking for a better life, and he started making wine as a hobby,” said Calabria. “That hobby turned into a commercial business as there were more European settlers in the market looking for some table red wine.”
The second generation, led by Calabria’s father and uncle, expanded and reshaped the business.
“My dad transformed the table wine production,” said Calabria. “We went from light, easy-going reds to quality wine from the Riverina.”
While traditional table wines remained central to the portfolio, Calabria’s father also began experimenting with alternative grape varieties and premium wine production. Varieties such as Sangiovese and Montepulciano became part of the winery’s evolving identity, helping shift perceptions of what Riverina wines could offer. He also drove a category called Durif which won Gold at the San Francisco Wine Competition and Japan Wine Challenge.
“These alternate varieties were a passion for my father, and he really transformed the language in wine,” said Calabria.
Today, Calabria Family Wines operates as both a wine producer and distributor, representing a growing portfolio of local and international family-owned brands.
Front to back operation
The business exports to more than 40 countries while also servicing domestic retail and hospitality markets. Calabria said the company’s scale now stretches well beyond winemaking alone, incorporating vineyards, bottling operations, warehousing, distribution and cellar door experiences.
“We’re not just manufacturing wine – we’re growing grapes, turning it into wine and bottling it,” he said. “We run our own distribution centre and service hospitality customers across the country. We also run our own venues for our cellar doors and tasting rooms.”
Calabria Family Wines sources fruit both from its own vineyards and from long-standing growers before processing and bottling products in house. Its bottling facility is equipped with four packaging lines. The site handles both conventional wine bottles and alternative formats designed to stand out on shelves and engage changing consumer demographics.
“Innovation has definitely been the driving force to our business,” Calabria said. “What we’re doing really well with is around different packaging.”
One of the facility’s two primary wine bottling lines can produce up to 12,000 bottles per hour using traditional bottle formats. A second line, operating at around 5,000 bottles per hour, is dedicated to non-traditional shapes and innovative packaging concepts.
“We’re coming up with concept packaging that is convenient,” he added. “It could be a small format, or it could be decorative bottles that aren’t traditional to wine.”
The company’s Belena range is one example of this strategy, featuring packaging that resembles premium spirit bottles rather than conventional wine formats.
Alongside packaging innovation, Calabria Family Wines is also investing in operational efficiency and automation across its facilities.
“We’re always looking at equipment efficiency,” Calabria said.
He emphasised the company’s direction to drive a paperless business. Automated picking systems are also being explored as part of broader warehouse and logistics improvements. Through more advanced automation across bottling and packaging lines through to its distribution centre, the business aims to not only reduce labour but to drive higher efficiency for its products.
House of Fine Wine
A recent acquisition has further expanded its market presence and customer reach. In February 2026, Calabria Family Wines’ acquisition of House of Fine Wine and The Wine Company marked the next stage of integration and bringing its domestic distribution businesses together under a single market facing identity.
“The acquisition was a strategic decision to ensure we have strong relevance for our customers,” Calabria said. “We understand that efficiency across all supply chains through to hospitality is important.”
In April 2026, the company confirmed House of Fine Wine as its unified domestic trading and distribution platform. The combined platform brings together portfolios and teams under the House of Fine Wine banner. This move aims to strengthen national reach and capability across on premise and independent retail channels.
“This is a natural and exciting next step following our recent acquisitions,” said Calabria. “By bringing our distribution businesses together under the House of Fine Wine name, we’re creating greater clarity for the market while building a platform that supports growth, investment and long-term partnerships.”
The company remains family-owned, with no changes to ownership, customer relationships, supply arrangements or trading terms because of the transition.
Back to the roots
Leading the company as a third-generation winemaker, the business is a personal endeavour for Calabria.
“As kids, I remember my brothers and sister playing hide and seek in the winery,” he said. “My dad would have us taping up boxes and putting the bottles into the boxes or carrying out boxes of wine to customers’ cars.”
When asked whether he knew that he was going to be heavily involved in the family business, Calabria called it a natural progression.
“It was never forced upon – we just wanted to be in the business,” he said. “While it wasn’t expected, we just felt a natural gravitation to want to contribute to the family business.”
Despite the scale of the operation today, Calabria said the company’s family roots continue to shape its culture and long-term decision making. Growing up inside the winery gave the third-generation direct connection to both the business and the sacrifices that built it.
Those experiences continue to influence how the family approaches growth and investment. The business aims to make decisions for the long-term. This approach has also helped the business navigate periods of volatility across the wine sector, including export disruptions, changing consumer preferences and broader economic pressures.
“History tells us a lot and wine has been made for centuries,” Calabria said. “Sometimes hard decisions today are the best for the future.”
The company’s current strategy includes strengthening its export footprint, particularly across Asia. While established markets such as the US, Canada and the UK remain important, Calabria sees opportunity in markets like the Philippines and Singapore. Part of Australia’s advantage, he believes, is its international reputation which continues to position local producers well in overseas markets.
While optimistic about future opportunities, he acknowledged the challenges currently facing the broader wine industry. Rising costs, changing consumption habits and global uncertainty continue to pressure many producers.
“The Australian wine industry is struggling at the moment,” he said. “We need to continue to produce good quality wines, we need to innovate and we need to be unified.”
Innovation remains closely tied to preserving the legacy established by previous generations while preparing the business for the next. Now with a fourth-generation beginning to spend time around the winery, Calabria sees similarities between his own childhood experiences and those of his children today.
As the business continues to evolve, Calabria said maintaining a balance between heritage and future thinking will remain central to Calabria Family Wines.
“I have young kids and they come to work with me on the weekend,” he said. “Growing up within the wineries is a memory that will live a lifetime.
“It’s not always just about what’s the results for the financial year. We try to plan and make decisions for the long-term because this is our backyard. This is our home.”
