Conde Nast Traveler, July 2011
Herbaceous Hotels
Veggies sprout in the backyards of these ultra-locavore properties.
A Hedonist’s Guide
The writers at UK publication A Hedonist’s Guide are generally a city-loving bunch, but even they can’t resist the countrified sophistication of Babylonstoren, as this review on their blog attests.
Read the full review here.
Lifestyle Farms
SPORTFORUS journalist, Marie Le Fort, has put together a wonderful lineup of ‘Farm to Table’ venues around the world that are working on similar lines to how we do things at Babylonstoren, like The Farm, in Pittsburgh, Domaine de Capelongue, in France, and Falsed Kro in Denmark (pictured below) . Read the full article here.
The star of the week
The unseasonably sunny weather has created shooting stars out of our cauliflower wanting to bloom, but our garden’s real star of the week is undoubtably the purple cauliflower. This handsome vegetable has grown from seed originating in Sicily, and its ancestors are the same forms of cauliflower from which the common crisp white cauliflower has been derived, modified by the French in the 16th Century. The purple colouring is caused by the presence of the antioxidant group anthocyanins, which can also be found in red cabbage and red wine.
In case you’d also like to grow a beautiful purple Sicilian Cauliflower or two, you can get seeds from Shannon at the Gravel Garden in Somerset West (Call 082 7332834).
Have a lovely day in the garden,
Gundula
The slopes of the Simonsberg
There’s a new development in the Babylonstoren farm shop. We are now selling a selection of wines, all from the cellars that share the slopes of the Simonsberg with us. The wines are all at the same price as you’ll find at the cellars themselves, so this is a nice way to see what the terroir of the Simonsberg has on offer, all in one place!
While you’re in the shop, pick up a map of the Simonsberg, showing the roads and the relative position of every cellar around the mountain.
So, Babylonstoren is becoming a wine destination, and we’re eagerly anticipating the day when we have our own wines on the rack too!
Painting the past
One of our visitors, specialist wine guide and artist, Janet Malherbe, sent us this photo of a painting of the hoenderhok that she made while visiting Babylonstoren some years back.
During the time when the Louw family owned Babylonstoren, the buildings near the hoenderhok was used for wine tastings. Of course, things have changed over the years, and now our hoenders now have a totally different hok, but this farm is steeped in history, and we love hearing from people who’ve known and loved Babylonstoren over the years.
Click here to read more about the history of Babylonstoren.
Some ice with your wine?
Before bottling a white wine there are a few things that you have to do to get the wine ready. One of these is to make the wine Cold Stable, which means we take the wine’s temperature to just below 0˚C. The wine won’t freeze at this temperature, because of the alcohol, but it ensures that all the tartaric acid in the wine will crystalize at this temperature. The reason we do this is that it prevents the forming of crystals inside a bottle while being chilled in a refrigerator.
When making the wine Cold Stable, a thick layer of ice forms around the stainless steel tank where the cooling jackets are. It’s quite a sight!
Lekker naweek,
Charl.
Tree planting
This week, we’ve been planting trees at our wine cellar, with four Turkish oaks (Quercus cerris) planted along the driveways leading to the cellar, and near the site of our future distillery, we’re planting a small forest of Cork Oaks (Quercus suber). The Turkish Oaks are fast-growing and will be wonderful shade trees, while the slow-growing Cork Oaks are to remind our visitors of where a wine cork comes from.
We made a little photo story to show the process of planting these trees. You’ll have to check in again in a few more years to see our “after” photos, when the trees are full-grown 
The holes are dug outside the cellar, waiting for the trees.
These trees are quite large, and had to be winched into place.
A well-deserved break after some back-breaking labour.
The freshly-planted Turkish Oaks (Quercus cerris) along the cellar driveway.
A good day's tree planting work is done!
Meet Anelle
Have you even had the good fortune to eat at Babel? Then I’m sure you’ll be pleased to meet Anelle van Tonder today, the Food & Beverage Manager at Babylonstoren.
Tell us a bit about what you do at Babylonstoren.
I look after everything delicious. The restaurant and tea garden are my babies, and I also look after our resident guests’ every “eat and drink” desire.
What is your working environment like?
I work on the most beautiful farm in the world, and I get to spend my time between all the beautiful buildings and our stunning restaurant, Babel.
What is your working day at Babylonstoren like?
I start the day in the restaurant, making sure that everything is ready for our guests’ breakfast, and then spend some time in the office doing orders and admin. At around 12 o’clock lunch starts, keeping me very busy making sure everythings running well. Usually by 17:00 or 18:00 I can lock up the restaurant, all ready for the next day. Of course, there are usually a few meetings throughout the week, a wine tasting here and there and regular trips to the garden to stay informed about what’s going on.
What’s your favourite part of the day at work?
Right in the middle of a fully booked lunch,when things are crazy busy and the restaurant is buzzing with conversation and the sound of cutlery and glasses clinging. People are talking and laughing, the waiters and chefs are focused and working like parts of a well oiled machine. Wine is flowing and the food is floating out of the kitchen onto tables full of anticipation. This gives me a total adrenaline kick. It’s like being a conductor or landing planes at Heathrow!
Tell us something about yourself that not many people know.
I am completely arachnaphobic, I love jazz & want to sing in a great choir one day.
What’s coming up next that you’re excited about?
Apart from the new winter menu at Babel, we are also in the process of erecting a magnificent 26m long glass conservatory at the back of the garden. Half of it will become a tearoom to serve breakfast, cakes and pastries, lighter meals and maybe even some tapas-style snacks at sundown. We’re also adding a small bakery, soap room, and two rooms dedicated to cheeses and charcuitery.
What makes you happy to work at Babylonstoren?
I truly love the integrity that everything is done with. “Organic” is such a buzz word, but it really is organic and authentic on every level – everything we take on has been researched and debated, and the first objective always is to be honest about it. I also completely adore all the animals!
Ben, Meisiekind and Lulu
Meet the Babylonstoren donkeys. They are called Ben and Meisiekind, and in November last year, little Lulu was born.
Unlike the rest of the Babylonstoren team, these three don’t do any work – they just graze until they get sleepy, and then they sleep until it’s time to graze again.
What a life!
Mercedes Benz magazine
Mercedes Benz magazine has done a write up on Babylonstoren’s garden and hotel.
Our herd of ducks
Visitors to Babylonstoren need to prepare themselves to possibly come across a herd of ducks during their visit. And yes, the collective noun for ducks is ‘flock’, but see this lot heading towards you between a row of vines, and you’ll think ‘herd’ too.
Every morning, the 200-odd clean, white Pecan Ducks leave their pen in the formal garden, and make their waddling way down to the orchards and vineyards on the farm, off for their day’s work. They’re very well-behaved, staying together all day, and never crossing a road until their keeper gives them the signal.
Their purpose is not just to charm visitors, but to feast all day long on their favourite food: snails, with a side dish of mixed insects, keeping our vines pest free. So it’s true: everyone does eat well at Babylonstoren!
Groete,
Hannes.
