From Ischia to Your Doorstep: The Heartfelt Story of DiVino

For Gerardo Di Iorio and Joanne Heggie, wine is the glue that binds people together. Their business, DiVino, isn't just a subscription service — it's a living bridge between the rustic traditions of Europe and the curious palates of Australia.

A Heritage of Sufferance and Celebration

Gerardo's connection to wine is ancestral. Born on the island of Ischia, off the Amalfi Coast, he grew up in a world where winemaking was a village moment — running into mountain caves as a child to splash and stomp on grapes with his cousins.

His grandmother Concetta taught him that "the vine needs to suffer" to produce great wine, making him bite bitter stems to understand tannins long before he knew the word for them. His true reckoning came years later in Switzerland, when a glass of Burgundy triggered a sensory flashback to the smell of earth and wet leaves on Mt Vezzi after a rain.

The Marketing Visionary

While Gerardo brings the heritage, Joanne brings the strategic spark. With 20 years in high-end marketing for fashion and beauty — including stints at GHD in London and Spain — she lived in Europe for nine years, absorbing the Mediterranean way of life.

The two met in Sydney in a way that felt like fate. After Joanne survived a massive earthquake in Japan, she decided life was too short and went on a first date with Gerardo. That night lasted two bottles of wine and ended with Gerardo opening her Uber door — a tradition he'd been practising by opening doors for random strangers at the restaurant for 20 minutes while waiting for her.

DiVino After Dark

DiVino truly comes to life during their wine-tasting evenings. Unlike stuffy, silent tastings, Joanne and Gerardo curate these nights to be festive and communal — large tables, upfront announcements that new friendships will be made, and the ever-present possibility of sabrage: the dramatic, celebratory art of opening a bottle with a sabre.

Guests are guided through exotic European wines they won't find in a bottle shop, while the founders work the room, talking to every single person, building a community where people now text Gerardo mid-date asking for help navigating a restaurant's wine list.

The Grand Tour

After a five-week research road trip across Australia — affectionately dubbed "The Grape Escape" — Gerardo and Joanne realised that Australians love wine but often choose it solely by grape variety. In Europe, wine is about the region, the food, and the season.

To bridge that gap, they launched The Grand Tour subscription: a curated box that includes a "Tastes Like" leaflet comparing each European bottle to a familiar Australian style, paired with regional recipes because, as Gerardo will tell you, European wine is made to be drunk while you eat.

Every bottle is hand-selected by Gerardo from small producers. If it doesn't meet his standards, it doesn't go in the box — even if the margin is better.

What They're Really Selling

As Joanne puts it: "I don't feel like we sell wine. I feel like we sell Europe and human connection."

Looking ahead, DiVino is expanding into physical tours of Italy and France, taking guests into the very vineyards where these stories began.

Explore DiVino at divinowine.com.au