De Rustica Autumn Newsletter

As De Rustica is moving into a new season, we are busy managing a very dry few months with below-average rainfall since November 2023. Our summers are known for erratic thunderstorms, and we invested heavily in the capability to catch up with most of these short periods of mass run-down waters coming down the mountain. We had to make tough calls regarding water, saving water for olives by cutting back on watering lucerne. But, as Rob is always saying, all of this can change with the blink of an eye; a proper downpour changes everything.

Olives

In the past, De Rustica had huge discrepancies in yearly volumes produced, referred to as “on year and off year.” Looking at our forecast for the coming harvest, it looks like Kallie and his team are succeeding in producing a stable yearly average that will assist us tremendously in terms of marketing.

Our season seems to be 3 weeks earlier, and we are on schedule to plan servicing, cleaning, testing, etc. for harvest 2024. The first EVOO will be available by mid-March.

We are going to launch, online and in our tasting room, a fresh, first-of-the-season, unfiltered EVOO in response to numerous inquiries. Our Sales and Marketing Manager, Louwrens Storm, cell 076 376 1915, can be contacted for more information or to follow our social media channels. Special thanks to De Rustica subscriber Lauren Norval for insisting we make this early season ultra-premium Unfiltered Oil available.

Following the dry spell, De Rustica was battling with fires, one of which was in one of our olive orchards. Interesting is how it started!! We were moving, and the blade of the mover hit a rock, creating a spark. Due to the amount of organic dry matter we use to manage our orchard floor below the trees, a fire was ignited. We had significant damage to trees and our irrigation system and are monitoring the extent of re-growth of the damaged olive trees.

Interesting and comforting is the increase in our population of guineafowls, hadadas, and egrets in the orchards, sheep, and lucern all over De Rustica. It supports our drive towards healthy orchards, sheep, and overall integrated pest management.

De Rustica Celebrates Triumph at EVOOLEUM Top 100 Gala

Madrid, Spain, January 16, 2024 Espacio Rastro Madrid set the stage for the Gala of the International Quality Awards for Extra Virgin Olive Oil—EVOOLEUM Awards, the paramount international celebration of extra virgin olive oil. Luis Planas, the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, welcomed esteemed producers from all over the world to the event. In a remarkable achievement, the EVOOLEUM ABSOLUTE BEST award for the best extra virgin olive oil in the world was bestowed upon the South African EVOO, De Rustica Estate Collection Coratina. This edition featured 61 Spanish extra virgins in the TOP100.

De Rustica Features in CapeTalk

We are overjoyed to announce our recent appearance on the Pippa Hudson-hosted CapeTalk podcast. Our General Manager, Dawie Durand, engaged in a fantastic discussion with Pippa, shedding light on the remarkable features of our esteemed estate.

Sale: Coratina and Favolosa

We are offering you our award-winning Favalosa and Coratina from the De Rustica Estate Collection varieties for just R150 each to honour the SA Olive Producers.

Coratina EVOO: EVOOLEUM Awards 2023 Winner: “VOTED BEST OLIVE OIL IN THE WORLD.”

Favalosa EVOO: well-balanced aromas, delightful macadamia flavours, smooth with a slight peppery finish.

Get them today while stocks last.

De Rustica Estate’s Sheep Programme

Critical to farming sheep are the pregnancy rate and birth rate. The birth rate is an indicator of the number of twins received during a lambing.

Conventional sheep-farming in the Karoo normally has a once-a-year lambing based on specific environmental conditions for that area. Given the harshness of these extensive farming conditions, the ewe’s ability to raise twins is under pressure.

At De Rustica, we expect an ewe to provide us with a lamb every nine months. We have different flocks, and lambing is every two months throughout the year. The birth rate is therefore a determining factor for success. We are addressing it by continuously improving our genetics. On the ewe side, focus on replacing, if possible, old ewes with younger ewes coming from twins. We breed our own replacement ewes at De Rustica.

On our Dohne rams, Rampie, our manager on sheep, attended an auction at a well-known breeder near Graaff-Reinet. Our independent advisor on sheep assisting him, researching the genetics and fertility of each ram, paid a premium for rams from twins, with a history of all their mothers and grandmothers, fathers and grandfathers, all from twins.

All lives matter.

A few months ago, we saved a springbuck offspring and another a week ago. Both  were to be hand-reared. Named Colby and Bambi.

See the video here.

What is coming to De Rustica

We have almost completed our new 12-seater conference centre, and it will be launched soon. With on-site lodging for overnight stays and team building, it will be a cutting-edge facility. Follow our social media channels for the launch.

De Rustica Estate in partnership with Jakhals Events is proud to present the very first three-stage trail run in the Oudemuragie area. Follow us and Jakhals Events on social media for the official launch and more information regarding the event. It is our mission to promote health, the beauty De Rustica has to offer, and being outdoors. Watch this space!

Website: https://jakhalsevents.co.za/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JakhalsEvents

Instagram: @jakhalsevents

Twitter/X: @JakhalsEvents

YouTube: Jakhals Events

Accommodation and Tasting Tours

Immerse yourself in the tranquility of the picturesque mountain views from our luxurious Asher Stable Stay guesthouse.

Olive Tours – Experience the insightful process of making Extra Virgin Olive Oil and get a taste of the different cultivars with one of our guided tours.

Tasting Tour – “Olive Oil Tasting Tour”
Duration: +- 40 minutes

Full Tour – “From Olive to Oil”
Duration +- 1hour 15min 

Book your accommodation and tour today.

Subscribe and Win!

The moment everyone has been waiting for… Congratulations to Pieter and Lene Veldman! We will be in touch with you regarding your prize.

As part of our Mediterranean Love Affair campaign, we wanted to reward couples with a chance to win a hamper prize filled with exquisite De Rustica experiences. For a successful entry, participants had to subscribe to our newsletter and tag friends to subscribe.

Be on the lookout for our future competitions, as we will be hosting a few throughout the year.

Events in and around De Rustica!

Events to look out for around De Rustica and De Rust. Please feel free to reach out to us for availability on 0729191110 or 0768687871, or visit our website at https://derustica.co.za/contact-us/ for the upcoming events.

Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees
23-31 March 2024
Oudtshoorn
044 203 8600
www.kknk.co.za
info@kunste.org.za

Meiringspoort Challenge
18 May 2024
De Rust
082 377 0547
meiringspoortchallenge.co.za
hello@meiringspoortchallenge.co.za

Meiringspoort 21.1 km & 12.5 km
12 October 2024
De Rust
082 854 3615
meiringspoort21.com
info@meiringspoort21.co.za

Swartberg 100 Gran Fondo TREK UCI Gravel World Championships
27 April 2024
Prince Albert
www.swartberg100.com