Badenhorst Family Wines

Adi Badenhorst makes wine the traditional way on Kalmoesfontein.

Winter visits with (more) perks (than usual)…

Posted on May 26, 2022 by quietriotgirl

Our accommodation is pretty (and) popular, usually booked up far in advance, but we still have a few spots open for midweek winter getaways. So we’re sweetening the deal with a few special winter warmer options:

June = wine time

This June, book our two bedroom Stables or Winemaker’s Cottage midweek and get a mixed case of Secateurs Wines to enjoy in front of the fireplace.

Book our one bedroom Silo or Melkkamer for a midweek stay and we’ll throw in a bottle of our much loved Caperitif and four Swaan Cape Tonics.

July = breakfast bonus

Book any of our accommodations for a midweek stay in July and we’ll throw in a farm breakfast, served at The Old House, every morning of your stay.

August = soup & red wine

Come stay midweek this August and enjoy a hearty homemade soup and farm fresh bread (at a mealtime of your preference), paired with a bottle of our Family Red Blend (with the two bedroom Stables or Winemaker’s Cottage) or Secateurs Red Blend (with the one bedroom Silo or Melkkamer), on us.

*T&Cs

Midweek means check-in Mondays (14h) and check-out on Fridays (10h). Minimum two nights stay.

Deal valid on any new bookings made (for 01 June – 31 August 2022) from the date of this post.

Please book via Nightsbridge (find the link on our farm’s website kalmoesfontein.com)

Hope to see you on the farm soon!

Book to visit: 2022

Posted on August 2, 2021 by quietriotgirl

Our accommodation bookings for 2022 are now open. Book early to reserve those special dates and come spend you birthday / anniversary / reunion or annual holiday on the farm with us.

We have 2 x two bedroom cottages (The Winemakers’ Cottage and The Stables) and 2 x one bedroom dwellings (Die Melkkamer – a new addition- and The Silo) each with luxury bedding, stunning scenery, private pools and access to everything the farm has to offer.

Find out more (click here or via Accommodation on the menu bar) to book to avoid disappointment.

The Joy of Missing out…

Posted on July 26, 2021 by quietriotgirl

This beautiful video, by online retailer Port2Port is pure magic. It captures Adi and our extended family’s philosophy (if that’s not too ‘wanky’ to say, Adi) and mission very nicely.

Read the accompanying article, here. And buy our wines from their store here. Enjoy!

From the farm with love

Posted on May 5, 2020 by quietriotgirl

Another week has come and gone, our local Covid19 strategy has evolved from a complete lockdown to a stage 4 (but figuring out exactly what that means feels like tricky algebra and we just know we cannot sell or export wine yet).

On the farm we are keeping busy though. Last week there was much excitement (and the most likes ever on a photo on our Instagram page) when we set up some cameras in the kloof and captured a Cape Leopard visit.

The whole family’s teenagers are currently locked down on the farm – after (huge) breakfasts they work on the farm (whatever is on the daily agenda) until (a massive) lunch and then it is homeschool time. When homework is done they usually venture into the kloof to work on and play in their ‘den’. In the past they had also spent a few nights camping there.

But last week brother-in-law Mark had a hunch to set up a camera at a porcupine hole and what do you know, we caught a glimpse of a leopard having a go at two porcupines!

Very exciting (if you are not sleeping 30 meters away!).

This week we’ve checked into a few vineyards which might interest you.

The last grapes harvested for 2020 comes from the oldest Bukettraube vineyard in SA (and the world??). Planted in 1978 – a time when Swartland Bukettraube could be found in every bottle store in the country.

I remember my Oupa talking about “boeke vol trouble” (books full of trouble) and although we are not looking for trouble, Adi does mention that he is trying to “make the Swartland great again…”. …

…

And then, on the other end of the scale, this is a young Grenache Noir vineyard planted in 2018 and doing very lekker.

Oh we hope we can show you around the farm in real life, soon soon.

Stay safe.

Harvest 2020

Posted on February 28, 2020 by quietriotgirl

2020 is a leap year, although we didn’t even really need the extra day in February- the grapes are 99% picked and pressed.

Down to just over 250 tons from about 280ish tons in 2019, this year’s harvest came in fast. Vineyards put their hands up to say ‘pick me now’ from early in January; there were a few crazy days in early February when temperatures peaked in the low 40s (that’s degrees Celsius) and it seemed the cold room would never be empty again.

But the vinyl kept playing; the crew kept gooiing kussies; the pomp kept klapping and the team are all smiles.

This year we once again had Keiji (aka Cage) all the way from Japan and Raynard (all the way from Malmesbury…) with new (very) local addition Tol (his father being our much featured long time employee Fortuin); first half impact player Tom (a Badenhorst) and Tom (not a Badenhorst, who has already departed to do it all again in Argentina). With Hanneke keeping on top of all the details and Adi guarding over the bigger picture, the cogs kept on turning – some days from 4am till long after the sun set, only grinding to a halt for the occasional visit from The Loadshedding Demon.

Back from left to right; Tom (not Badenhorst), Tol, Hanneke, Adi. In front; Cage and Ray

Obviously there were a few sunrise braais, many cups of good coffee and, according to the team ‘never the same lunch twice’.

In between Charl and Semma (and Judy and Mina and the team) hosted numerous lunches (and breakfasts and pizza oven experiences) and we put on another edition of Bradstock.

Bradstock, as it is known amongst fans, originated last year as a combined 40th/50th for Belinda and Andy – the jol was such a hit that they decided to do it again this year, making it a mini festival for their group of friends. Hosted over 24 hours and with two meals, three dance floors, eight musical acts, numerous outfit changes and thirty Glamping tents on the terraces – this was a party to remember (and repeat!).

Just a friendly reminder that Kalmoesfontein is not only the home of some of your favourite wines, we also provides a unique venue and location to bring your celebrations to life.

As always, be sure to follow us on Instagram and/or Facebook to see what we get up to.

Single Vineyards 2018 Release

Posted on October 16, 2019 by quietriotgirl

Our Single Vineyard wines are made and bottled with the express intent to respect the truth of the site. Most of these vineyards are on our farm or other slopes and valleys of the Paardeberg. We’ve been working with some for almost 9 years now and each year these vineyards show a consistansy and uniqueness that we seek out.

As Adi says “these are wines without eye-shadow…”

The one everyone is talking about (well, Tim Atkin named it his red wine discovery of the year in his 2019 South African Report… and described it as ‘delicate, ethereal and graceful’, saying, ‘it’s one of the best Cinsaults I’ve ever tasted.’) is the new kid on the block the Ringmuur Cinsault.

It’s rarer than we like our fillet, sold out from our side and most retailers, make sure to grab it if you see it anywhere.

Others returning to the line up include

– the famous Raaigras “oldest Grenache vineyard in the land” from 12 rows / 1268 vines which yields about 3 tons in a good year.

-Chenin Blancs from Dassiekop, according to Adi the “finest Chenin Blanc vineyard in South Africa”; The Golden Slopes, named after the deep yellow coloured granite in the site; Piet Bok se Steen so called after an old vigneron who lived in a tiny cottage besides the block and Klipkop – a tiny parcel planted on top of a granite outcrop in 1966.

– and just to make things a bit harder for our international agents, wines named Sk’Windjiesvlei (a Tinta Barocca planted in 1962) and Sout van die Aarde (Palomino from the West Coast just north of Dwarskersbos…)

Christian Eedes reported on (and scored) all the wines from the 2018 vintage single vineyards recently. You can read his thoughts and tasting notes here (click click).

You can buy some here.

You can read about the 2019 harvest, here.

Winter wedding vibes

Posted on June 25, 2019 by quietriotgirl

This weekend we hosted a lovely wet winter wedding.

Congratulations to Neil and Nadine, we are so happy that you had such a blast.

The couple got married in front of the cellar, ate and celebrated on the stoep (made cost by curtains and heaters) and danced the night away under the tent covered dance floor.

To find out more about our venue or to enquire about hosting your event n the farm, contact semma@aabadenhorst.com

Movie night: a love story

Posted on February 15, 2019 by quietriotgirl

Last night we celebrated Valentines Day with a beautiful outdoor movie screening.

With pink Caperitif welcome drinks, pizza, wine, popcorn and the famous Badenhorst Family Ice Cream paired with a feel good local love story under the stars – it was truly a night to remember.

We plan on doing a few of these throughout the year so be sure not to miss the next one. Send me a mail on aabadenhorstwine@gmail.com to be on our events mailing list.

Hello harvest my old friend…

Posted on February 1, 2019 by quietriotgirl

And then it was February- goodness. We’ve been very busy on the farm; first prepping the cellar and new cold room for harvest, then waiting for grapes and after a rather hectic heatwave everything seemed to come at the same time. The Chenin Blanc anyway.

With Jasper now heading up his own cellar down the dust road Hanneke Botha has stepped up to head the team in the day to day of the cellar. Luckily for her and us Keiji has joined us from Japan for the third year and we have a few more pairs of hard working hands joining the regular crew this season.

In the next few weeks I will try to catch them all for a short interview (somehow between 4:30am starts, staggered lunch times and closing shop at 19:30 they have very little time for social media mangers…)

Here’s a few pics, keep an eye on our Instagram account @aabadenhorst for day to day blow by blow action.

Grafting

Posted on October 11, 2018 by quietriotgirl

This week we started grafting some shoots.

Grafting or graftage (just sounds like the kind of word that needs to be in italics) is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. We have joined Chenin Blanc, Palomino and Ugni Blanc scions onto an old Red Globe root systems. These grapes will in future be used for brandy wine production…

Ugni Blanc? At first my phone corrected it to Agri Blanc – so I had to read up more.

And no surprise I hadn’t heard of the varietal also known as Trebbiano before; Wikipedia (that wonderful deep well of knowledge) lists synonyms for it as “Albano, Albana secco, Biancone, Blanc Auba, Blanc De Cadillac, Blancoun, Bobiano, Bonebeou, Branquinha, Brocanico, Bubbiano, Buriano, Buzzetto, Cadillac, Cadillate, Castelli, Castelli Romani, Castillone, Chator, Clairette D’Afrique, Clairette De Vence, Clairette Ronde, Engana Rapazes, Espadeiro branco, Falanchina, Greco, Gredelin, Hermitage White, Juni Blan, Lugana, Malvasia Fina, Muscadet Aigre, Padeiro branco, Perugino, Procanico, Procanico Dell Isola D Elba, Procanico Portoferraio, Queue De Renard, Romani, Rossan De Nice, Rossetto, Rossola, Rossula, Roussan, Roussea, Rusciola, Saint Emilion, Saint Emilion Des Charentes, Santoro, Shiraz White, Spoletino, Talia, Trebbianello, Trebbiano, Trebbiano Della Fiamma, Trebbiano Di Cesene, Trebbiano Di Empoli, Trebbiano Di Lucca, Trebbiano Di Tortona, Trebbiano Fiorentino, Trebbiano Toscano, Trebbianone, Tribbiano, Tribbiano Forte, Turbiano, Ugni blanc, Bouan, Beau, Thalia, Trebbiano di Soave, Trebbiano Romagnolo, Trebbiano Gallo and Trebbiano d’Abruzzo.

Trebbiano shares at least three synonyms with the Spanish wine grape Viura including Queue de Renard, Rossan, Ugni blanc and the similarly spelled Gredelín/Gredelin.”

Yup! In short – it is an Italian wine grape, one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the world. It gives good yields, but tends to yield undistinguished wine. Its high acidity makes it important in Cognac productions. En van daar die brannewyn planne.

And so, hopefully, you learn something new every day! Stay tuned for more informative updates, we’re excited to watch this develop.