Stuart Family Vineyards

Stuart Family Vineyards at Natimby Wine & Polo Farm, Bot River

Stuart Family Vineyards is the boutique wine project of Peter and Sue Stuart on Natimby Wine and Polo Farm in the Bot River ward of the Walker Bay district. Natimby—short for Nature In My Back Yard—sits on Karwyderskraal Road, Botrivier, about an hour from Cape Town in the unspoiled Bot River Valley with views toward the Babylonstoren Mountains. Official hospitality and wine site: natimby.co.za. Contact Sue Stuart on 072 107 5533 or info@natimby.co.za.

This is a regenerative farm story first: once an abandoned dairy, Natimby was rebuilt as an eco-retreat with regeneratively farmed vineyards, organic pastures, polo facilities, a large-scale composting operation on neighbouring dairy land, and sustainable lodges. The wine label is deliberately small. Travellers should treat Stuart Family as an appointment tasting stop tied to the farm stay—not a walk-in Bot River cellar door.

Wine tasting: by appointment only — phone ahead

Botriver Wine Route and Natimby’s own visitor messaging are clear: wine tasting is by appointment. Intimate tastings are framed at the Polo Club and Tasting Room, introducing the limited Stuart Family bottles with the farm’s sustainability story. There is no published walk-in schedule. Do not invent open hours or assume you can drop in between Beaumont and Gabriëlskloof.

How to book honestly:

1. Phone 072 107 5533 or email info@natimby.co.za ahead of travel. 2. Say how many guests, whether you are staying on the farm, and which wines you hope to taste. 3. Confirm meeting point (Polo Club / tasting room) and payment or bottle-sales arrangements for the day. 4. If you are running late, call again—this is a working farm and polo property, not a high-volume tourism bar.

Third-party directories that imply casual walk-in tasting for Stuart Family / Natimby should be ignored unless Sue or Peter confirms same-day availability.

Signature wines: Syrah (Shiraz) and Chenin Blanc

Stuart Family Vineyards produces limited-volume wines from regeneratively farmed Natimby vineyards nourished with compost from the farm’s large-scale composting project. Public estate copy emphasises two core bottlings:

• Syrah (often discussed as Shiraz in Cape retail shorthand) — described on the Natimby wine pages as a rich but balanced aged Syrah with ripe dark blackberry notes and soft tannins from second-fill French oak. Limited release from regeneratively farmed vines.
• Chenin Blanc — subtle passion-fruit aromatics with fresh summer fruit and citrus on the palate; positioned for fish, chicken, and mild curries.

Volumes are small. Wines are sold directly from the farm, online via Natimby’s wine-bar / order channels, through Wine & Co in Hermanus, and at selected restaurants. The Natimby Wine Bar concept (insulated vessel with 3-litre foil packs of Chenin or Syrah) is a separate hospitality-trade product for lodges and terraces—interesting brand context, but not a substitute for booking a farm tasting.

Do not invent medals, permanent SKU lists, or walk-in flight prices. Ask when you phone what is pourable that week.

Stay: Silver Teal Lodge and Natimby lodges

Accommodation is a major reason people find Natimby. Silver Teal Lodge—named for a favourite polo pony—is the flagship two-bedroom, self-catering eco-lodge marketed as Conscious Luxury. Official accommodation details include:

• Two double ensuite bedrooms
• Fully equipped kitchen and living room
• Off-grid power
• Central atrium and eco-friendly compost-heated hot tub
• Internet, indoor/outdoor braai, combustion fire
• Secure perimeter and controlled access

Published rate on the Natimby accommodation page: R3,000 per night for Silver Teal Lodge (confirm current rates when booking). Midweek multi-night offers appear on the site with promotional codes that rotate—verify the live offer rather than assuming a permanent discount.

Natimby positions longer stays (a week or more) for remote work and nature recharge: trout dam fishing and swimming, cycling, walks, horseback riding in the valley, nearby farm-to-table dining, and whale-coast day trips. Polo facilities and regeneratively managed pastures complete the farm identity beyond wine alone.

Bot River / Walker Bay route placement

Bot River sits off the N2 between Cape Town and Hermanus—cooler Overberg sites, personality-driven cellars, and fewer coach-tour terraces than Hemel-en-Aarde Valley floor. Stuart Family / Natimby fits the appointment + stay niche alongside other Bot River farms that ask you to phone first. Pair a booked tasting with a lodge night, or with separately confirmed open cellars the same day. Do not schedule Stuart Family as a spontaneous add-on between open Hemel-en-Aarde doors.

Owners listed on the Botriver Wine Route page: Peter and Sue Stuart. Website listed there: www.natimby.co.za. Email capitalisation on route pages may vary (`Info@natimby.co.za`); use the live Natimby contact form and info@natimby.co.za.

Practical contacts (verified)

• Web: https://www.natimby.co.za/
• Address: Natimby Farm, Karwyderskraal Road, Botrivier
• Phone: 072 107 5533
• Email: info@natimby.co.za
• Tasting: by appointment only — phone or email ahead; no walk-in
• Stay: Silver Teal Lodge / Natimby lodges via the accommodation pages
• Retail tip: Wine & Co Hermanus stocks Stuart Family bottles when available

Why Stuart Family belongs on a Walker Bay SEO guide

Stuart Family Vineyards is the wine face of Natimby Wine & Polo Farm: regenerative Bot River Syrah/Chenin in tiny volumes, polo-and-lodge hospitality, and tasting that exists only when you arrange it. Accurate SEO must stress phone ahead, Silver Teal / Natimby lodge stays, and no invented walk-in hours. Collectors and overnight guests who value sustainability storytelling will find it; walk-in tourists will not. Always re-confirm lodge rates, pour list, and appointment times with Natimby before locking an itinerary.