Cheers to 15 years! 

This month marks 15 years since the first guests walked through our gates. Fifteen seasons of planting, tending and sharing. With each passing year the farm has flourished and so has our community. Thank you for being part of our story. Do join us in celebrating this milestone. 

Hurray for Garden Day 

Any day of the year – but especially on Garden Day – our garden is your garden. Kick off your shoes, let your hair down and celebrate all things green and gorgeous on Sunday, 12 October. Garden visitors can weave a flower crown on the farm or bring their own. Stroll through the farmyard while sipping and savouring delicious bites and drinks from tasting stations – all included in your entry fee. 

End the day with a guided garden walk and a harvest table under the setting sun (booking for Sunset Celebration is essential). 

Enter our Garden Day Selfie competition on Instagram and Facebook for the chance to win a R3000 Babylonstoren online shop voucher. Post your happiest Garden Day selfie taken on the farm, tag @babylonstoren and use #babylonstorengardenday to enter. Entries close at midnight on Garden Day.  

Exceptional Tastemakers 

Join us in raising a glass to our blush darling this October – and you could walk away with a gift too. Buy six bottles of Babylonstoren Mourvèdre Rosé from our Tasting Room and stand a chance to win a R15 000 Babylonstoren online shop voucher. Keep an eye on our socials – we’ll be sharing celebratory sips of Mourvèdre Rosé with friends of the farm, near and far, all month long. 

Take the kids to 1896! 

Yearning for a screen-free day with the kids? At Soetmelksvlei, they can splash, explore, craft and bake while you enjoy the treasures of the Old Cellar and Farmhouse. We’re hosting two fun workshops during the school holidays: children can make their own soetkoekies or you can join them in making sun prints and wonderful memories. 

Beyond daily farm chores like milking, cream separation, animal care and milling, our team has some crafty tricks up their sleeve – from kite-making and leather crafting to a treasure hunt that keeps little ones wide-eyed and curious. Open daily during school holidays. 

Garden highlights 

Our clivias are continuing their fiery display in the Puff Adder walkway and along the embankments of the stream. For a brief but spectacular week or so, the macadamia trees next to the Greenhouse Restaurant dress themselves in dusky pink blooms, while persimmons and pomegranates add their own spring blossoms to the mix. Pears, apples, grapes, figs, lemons and custard apples are also flowering. The first green figs of the season are ready to be transformed into preserves at a Cape food workshop at Soetmelksvlei. 

In the garden, loquats and the very first peaches are ripening – a delicious sign that summer’s bounty is coming. The Welwitschia Garden has shed its winter raincoat and is basking in the warmth, while just beyond the rock gong the river embankment leads to the rich regional diversity of the Succulent Garden. 

Bottled botanicals 

We’re forever trying to capture Mother Nature’s perfumery. Step into the Scented Room to discover our newly launched Tuinier collection – invigorating home fragrances rooted in the fertile soil of the garden. Botanical Beet, Herb Garden and Summer Heirloom capture the freshly picked scents of the earth. 

Gold for liquid gold 

We’re delighted that our extra virgin olive oils scooped four gold medals at the SA Olive Oil Awards held in September. Book an olive tour & tasting to discover the age-old craft of harvesting, pressing and preserving olives. Your taste buds will thank you.  

Big on Balsamic 

On 1 October, cellar master and balsamic expert Klaas Stoffberg will host a special workshop sharing the secrets of this liquid treasure. This month also marks the annual decanting of our prized 12-year-old Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena – a rare occasion in South Africa. 

This vinegar is made from imported must of lambrusco and trebbiano grapes, aged in traditional Italian barrels before being bottled here in the Boland. From the smallest barrel, only a handful of 100 ml bottles are produced each year – a true collector’s gem. 

Apple Day Weekend at The Newt 

Head to The Newt on 18–19 October for a two-day celebration of all things apple – from juice pressing and orchard games to displays, recipes, cyder tastings and tractor tours. Enjoy live music, apple-inspired menus, a hearty BBQ with estate meats and vegetables, and an abundance of apples in every shape and form. 

https://thenewtinsomerset.com/event/apple-day/

Buzz behind the Moestuin 

Our bees are back at work, making the most of blossoms and pollen in the spring air. But there’s more to their buzz than the usual hive activity. From behind the Moestuin comes the sound of something wonderful on its way … an ode to our VIP farm workers. Watch this space. 

Workshops on the farm

Babylonstoren 

01 Oct – Discover the secrets of traditional Italian Balsamic vinegar 

07 Oct – Garden Day: create your own flower crown (am & pm) 

08 Oct – The colourful world of clivias and other indigenous bulbs  

09 Oct – Garden Day: create your own flower crown (am & pm) 

15 Oct – Discover the secret life of bees 

21 Oct – Create a natural freshwater pond 

21 Oct – Craft your own homemade soap 

28 Oct – Explore the beautiful world of fynbos 

29 Oct – Grow your own summer vegetables 

Soetmelksvlei 

02 Oct – Traditional needlework: the basics of colourful quilting  

03 Oct – Hands-on kids: bake & ice your own farm animal biscuits (6–12 years)  

09 Oct – Family fun: make sun prints  

10 Oct – Everything’s better with butter: make butter & bake buttermilk rusks  

16 Oct – Cape food: seasonal green fig preserve  

17 Oct – Chocolate celebration: chocolate cake & treats  

23 Oct – Master meat: boerewors & droëwors  

24 Oct – Cake cookery: traditional melktert, melkkos & koesisters  

Book here