On a recent Saturday morning a group of members of our wine club and their family and friends gathered at the farm for a day of tree planting, wine tasting and a well-earned lunch. Part of being a Backsberg Wine Club member involves the opportunity to plant a tree in your family’s name, on the farm. This ties into our philosophy of care for the environment; it was important for me to extend that view to the wine club.
Greeted by some bubbly and something tasty to nibble on, people arrived mid-morning, to a seriously stunning winter’s day. I had been watching the weather rather nervously throughout the prior week, but luck was definitely on our side. We headed to the tree planting site, not far from the winery- the idea being that members can visit their tree anytime they like.
Our horticulturist Gericke and his trusty side-kick Matthew had kindly pre-dug the holes for the trees, plus they provided an amusing idiot’s guide on how to plant a tree. My favourite part of the guide was definitely the very key, last point ‘Look and admire your tree, and drink another glass of vino’. The guide aside, yours truly did a little demo of how to plant a tree, before inviting members to plant their own tree. The tree planting went down very well, with everyone getting thoroughly involved.
Last week we received a brilliant letter from Laurence Matroos, which really summed the day up. Here is an excerpt:
Will you please thank the Back family, especially Simon for the wonderful day spend on their beautiful wine estate and in their company. I left there boasting to all and sundry that there is a tree planted on the Backsberg estate in my family’s name. It gives me great pride to know that my family is now part of the history of the Backsberg estate and that we left behind a legacy for those that will come after us.
The tree planting was rounded off by a wine tasting, which included a vertical tasting of our Klein Babylonstoren and then a delicious lamb on the spit lunch at the restaurant.
Story and photos by Simon Back.
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