XO Wine Co is a small boutique winery just out of Meadows in the Adelaide Hills, owned and run by Greg Clack and Kate Horstmann. The winery produces small batch wines from the Adelaide Hills and McLaren Vale, some of which are only a single barrel in size. XO produce wines using an academic approach with minimal intervention in mind, all this while keeping an artistic flair in order to highlight varietal and site expression with great drinkability. XO was derived from the board game naughts and crosses; two different letters can be rearranged in several different ways giving a multitude of outcomes. When X or O are aligned then the outcome is a winner. Wine can be viewed the same way, when the elements align - the growing season, vineyard, winemaking, oak choice, blending to name a few then the outcome is spectacular. If the elements are arranged slightly differently than the outcome is still fun and enjoyable and that is what makes wine so alluring.
Kate and Greg started XO Wine Co in 2017. Both trained winemakers, Greg was and still is the head winemaker for Chain of Ponds wines, whilst Kate was working for Langhorne Creek winery, Project Wine, when the pair decided to establish XO. Living on their 42 acre propety in Kuitpo, the decision was made to convert a small shed into a winery, and 2017 saw the pair produce a few batches of their favourite varieties. Fast forward to 2022, Greg and Kate still juggle XO outside their 'day' jobs, however the range has now grown to a much larger array of their favourite varieties! The wines XO produce start in the vineyard and Kate and Greg pride themselves on working with some fantastic growers who are just as passionate about producing quality wines as they are.
"MAKING GOOD WINE IS ABOUT DRINKING GOOD WINE, BUT MAINLY ABOUT DRINKING BEER"
