About BACCO

Bacco Story

Our family’s culinary journey began in 2002 when we travelled back to Anna’s hometown and opened our first restaurant, ‘Per Bacco’, in the Italian countryside of Emilia-Romagna, located between Piacenza and Parma. With a literal translation of ‘For Bacchus’, ‘Per Bacco’ is a phrase colloquially used as an expression of pleasure and surprise that resembles our English, ‘Of course!’. Underlying this common usage, however, is a reference to the ancient Roman God of wine, fertility, agriculture and theatre, Bacchus. Connected to the slow food movement in Italy, we sourced all our ingredients from local, organic producers with a menu that celebrated traditional Emilian cuisine. 

Following our return to Australia in 2005, we established an organic pasta shop in Bronte, aptly named Pasta Emilia, which quickly became a beloved local spot. Inspired by our culinary experiences in Emilia-Romagna, we sought to maintain an ethos of sourcing high quality, organic local ingredients. Encouraged by the success of our pasta shop we moved to a larger space in Surry Hills in 2012, which allowed us to integrate a restaurant and thereby bring a traditional Emilian dining experience to Sydney. Since then, we have become a celebrated part of the Sydney culinary community with a reputation for high quality, organic home-made pasta. 

 Nearly twenty years on we made our first venture into the wine industry with our purchase of the Bacco vineyard in 2021. The vineyard holds a special place in our hearts, as it pays homage to our inaugural restaurant, ‘Per Bacco’, named in honour of Bacchus. 

Far from the inner city metropolis of Surry Hills, our Hunter Valley vineyard has allowed us to cultivate an organic farm as we envisioned all those years ago in the Italian countryside. Bordered by the sprawling woodland of Wollemi National Park, one is instantly overcome by the raw beauty of our little valley. Amid the organised chaos of our two maremmas, herd of sheep, alpacas, pigs, geese, turkeys, highlander cows, bull and chickens our grape varietals [of Chardonnay, Semillon, Verdelho, Shiraz, Merlot, and Chambourcin] thrive in the fertile valley.

Meaning

Bacco Wines seeks to evoke the celebration of wine and communal feasting that was borne within the ancient worship of Bacchus. Like the Roman followers of Bacchus, we also believe that truly great wine should be shared with those that you cherish, alongside equally great food made with love. 

 

The Bacchanalia was a festival in ancient Rome dedicated to Bacchus. Celebrated in March, participants would gather in secret locations, often in the countryside, and engage in dancing, singing and drinking in order to engage in a mystical union with the God. 

 

At Bacco Wines, we respect the almost mystical power of wine, cultivated with love, to deliver an equally transformative sense of liberation (but consumed in moderation!).