Writer and podcast host, Bianca du Plessis, and Arné Stander (beekeeper)
Babylonstoren is excited to share the release of a vodcast, featuring the stories of its people, plants and unique spaces. From its historical garden, winery and farm-to-fork restaurants, luxury hotel, spa and workshops, Babylonstoren is so much more than a typical Winelands farm. BabylonSTORIES captures the essence of Babylonstoren through the voices of the people who help shape this wonderful farm experience and all it has to offer.
Babylonstoren is home to a range of experts across multiple disciplines – interesting, exceptional individuals with depth of knowledge, immense passion for what they do and immaculate commitment to excellence, but also just lovely people with wonderful stories to tell, both personally and professionally.“We wanted to create a platform for them to tell their stories in their own words, and often in the space they’ve helped shape on the farm,” says vodcast host Bianca du Plessis, a writer at Babylonstoren. On joining Babylonstoren in January 2024, Bianca realised the need to share her colleagues’ stories on a broader platform – and in their own words.
In BabylonSTORIES “we talk to the people of Babylonstoren about what they do, how they do it, and why they do it.” The vodcast delves into pockets of knowledge across all departments: garden, cellar, hospitality, dining, guiding, farming, and product development.
Expect conversations with master botanists, creative chefs, gifted gardeners, and experts in their field. Interviews are generally filmed in the guest’s work environment, so expect beautiful scenery and spaces. Initial episodes will featureArné Stander (beekeeper at the newly launched Byzantium), Constance Stuurman (gardener and floral artist sharing her knowledge of indigenous healing herbs), Dr Ernst van Jaarsveld (master botanist and South Africa’s foremost succulent expert), Elsa Vogts (museologist and curator of experiences like Soetmelksvlei), and Schalk Vlok (executive chef). Each episode is filmed in-situ – among the clivias, near the hives, surrounded by succulents, or in a 19th-century farm kitchen.
Besides gathering information about gardening, insects, conservation, artisan skills, design, slow farming, seasonality and farm-to-fork dining, viewers will be left with a sense of having visited – or revisited – Babylonstoren, and of gaining a deeper, more nuanced insight into a subject they care about. Each episode offers a vivid glimpse into the daily life of Babylonstoren, guided by the people who know it best.
BabylonSTORIES is set to launch on 17 December 2025, with releases on Spotify, YouTube, and Apple, followed by monthly additions. Babylonstoren also created a dedicated home for the vodcast under the section BabylonStories on its website.