On an estate already world-famous for its remarkable gardens, luxury hotel and award-winning restaurants, Babylonstoren never stops reimagining what a heritage farm experience can offer. In the last few years, they have added an innovative wine museum and launched tours of their olive oil production. There’s a facility for pressing essential oils and a farm shop filled with lust-worthy items.
And now there is Soetmelksvlei, a unique historical experience set in a restored homestead on the slopes of the Simonsberg mountain.
It’s a short shuttle ride from the main homestead to Soetmelksvlei, but you’ll also be whisked more than a century back in time. The interactive farmstead at Soetmelksvlei is set in the late-1800s, a multi-sensory journey through time created by museologist Elsa Vogts, who also curated the Wine Museum in the Babylonstoren cellar building.
‘I’m fascinated by the culture of self-reliance that farm life in 1897 required,” says Vogts. ‘It was a self-contained eco-system where everything was handmade and repaired on-site, with a surprising level of sophistication. My personal favourite would have to be the water mill. It was a huge task to build a water mill from scratch, one that looks and functions like a 19th-century mill.’
Across the experience visitors are able to interact with master craftspeople as they go about their daily chores, as they would have in 1897, honouring the legacy of artisanry that existed then. There are fowl houses and milking sheds and workshops where artisans are always at work. In the farmhouse, you can take a seat at the kitchen table for a cup of moerkoffie, served with rusks, farm bread and home-churned butter. Discover the challenges of being a 19th-century cook, or wander the gardens to learn about heritage fruit, vegetables and medicinal plants from the gardeners on site each day
The Old Cellar is transformed into a room combining exhibition space, playhouse and reading room, while the Old Stables Restaurant will keep you well-fed with traditional farm cooking. In the Jonkershuis Farm Shop you’ll find old-world keepsakes and home-made edibles alongside hand crafted clothing, footwear and ironwork.
‘After years of hard work and preparation, it is wonderful to share all the knowledge we’ve acquired with like-minded people who appreciate handwork and craftsmanship,’ says Head of Soetmelksvlei, Adele Johnson. ‘My biggest concern is that guests will underestimate how much there is to see and explore here.’
In winter Soetmelksvlei is open from Thursday to Sunday, from 9am to 4pm. Shuttles depart Babylonstoren at 30-minute intervals from 8.30am to 1pm, returning to Babylonstoren at 11am, and every hour on the hour until 4pm.
Entrance costs R300 per adult, which includes the annual Babylonstoren membership – valued at R100 – required for entry to the estate. Thos holding a valid membership pay R200. R100 entrance fee for children aged 4–17. Book online at babylonstoren.com.
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