Welcome, meet the family
As a township, Harvey is rich in entrepreneurial spirit. Pre and post WWII immigrants, many from Italy, built their livelihoods in the quaint close-knit community, at the northern end of the Geographe Wine Region.
One of those valiant arrivals was Giuseppe Sorgiovanni. It was on the banks of the Harvey River in 1928 that he, a humble Italian immigrant, started his family farming legacy.
Gathering on weekends with uncles and grandparents to make small batch wines was a much loved family tradition. Travelling up to the Swan Valley during the week to bring back trucks of Cabernet and Shiraz was not uncommon. An undeniable streak of competition, to see who would make the best bottles, permeated these sun soaked afternoons.
Growing up in the family business gave (Giuseppe son) Kevin Sorgiovanni a keen passion for agriculture, a deep understanding and love of the land, business accruement and export experience - a well-rounded resume on which he has built his family’s wine venture Harvey River Estate.
Kevin was raised amongst the orchards in Harvey. His first memory; sat in a crate of oranges while his mother was packing fruit. Early impressions running amuck between the rows of citrus trees, and driving tractors during school holidays are now shared with his (four) daughters, who have all grown up in Harvey and within the family businesses.
These days, it is his daughter Juliette who joins him at the helm. Kevin’s three other daughters and wife remain close by to also lend a hand. The third-generation of the agriculturally acute Harvey-based family is a hands on operator who’s worldliness and eagerness sees her active in most areas of the winery.
The hunger to try something new, the desire to build a bright future, and unwavering support of a close knit family are very much alive today at Harvey River Estate, just as they were almost 100 years ago when the family’s first seeds were sown on the banks of the Harvey River.