Blog
This When the Land is Healthy blog follows the farm’s pollinators from hedgerow to glass. It opens on the “rush hour” around the elder hedge, then shows how healthy edges, living soil and mixed plantings create bloom corridors for bees, birds, hoverflies and other insects. Pollination is a lived conversation between plants, pollinators and weather that leads to elderflower harvest, wild fermentation and the brightness of Elderflower Mist Sparkling.
This 'Why What We Make Matters' blog sets out the philosophy behind Elderflower Mist Sparkling. It starts with the summer drinking “script” most Australians know, then offers a different one: keep the pop, pour and glassware, but go lighter on alcohol. Drawing on Shireen’s NoLo research, it shows how people are asking for considered, low-alcohol options with real flavour, clear ingredients and honest ABV. The piece positions Classic, Crimson Delight and Wild Mountain Hop as lightly alcoholic elderflower sparklings for long afternoons and clear heads, and frames ABV transparency as a form of care. It closes with an invitation to “pour for the pleasure of it, not for the fog” as a guiding principle for the year ahead.
A portrait of biodiversity in motion. Widden Brook’s growing elder hedgerows have turned open pasture into habitat. Families of Superb Fairy‑wrens and other small birds now nest every year, sustained by the insects and life drawn to the elders. It’s a story of reciprocity — how making room for life invites it back in.
December brings the qualities of generosity and lightness to life. And it's a perfect time to experience how our bottle‑fermented Classic, Crimson Delight and Wild Mountain Hop offer festive sparkle without the heaviness, blending ritual, moderation, and the art of sharing a moment worth remembering.
Explore how cover crops transform bare soil into a living network. Through a mix of grasses, legumes, and forbs, the land regenerates itself — holding water, building carbon, and supporting pollinators. It connects the unseen health of soil with the brightness found in every glass we pour.
Shireen began a research project at Charles Sturt University examing how Australians engage with no- and low-alcohol (NoLo) drinks. The goal is to understand what truly shapes our choices — from flavour and provenance to purpose and ritual — as we move toward more mindful ways of drinking. That project grew into an ABARES Award winning honours thesis and continues as part of an ongoing study exploring Australian LoNo drinking habits.