The 20 year old Rich Glen Olive Farm and Cafe; owned and run by the amazingly talented Rosaland Vodusek and her husband Daimien is a true representation of a family built empire, signifying the 'paddock to plate' way of living - where produce is home grown, nurtured, harvested and then prepared with love in a way that you've never seen before. With over 30,000 olive trees in the Olive Grove, you can imagine the mass output of this pure, cold pressed, healthy home essential that is Rich Glen Olive Estates' Signature Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO). Even more impressively though, Ros has taken their EVOO business about 10 steps further, expanding on the paddock to plate lifestyle like you couldn't even imagine! She started experimenting with the oil as a base ingredient for many different flavoured pottages and opened a whole new cafe/shop area for consumers to visit on the farm that ultimately became the game changer for Rich Glen Olive Estate.

The farm house was originally Daimien and Ros' family home, with the very first offering of EVOO based condiments by Richglen Estate sold out of one of the kids bedrooms! Eventually, her experimentations with the oil and her knowledge of the absolute wonders that it could do expanded, and the Rich Glen Olive Estate product range grew significantly! taking over the whole home and sparking the start of the Cafe in 2013. The shelves upon shelves upon shelves stacked with abundances of house made products ready for you to purchase (most of which are based with Olive Oil, of course!) now fill out the refurbished old home, this is truly amazing in itself - see below the images of the endless amounts of quality, healthy house made products, accompanied by a tempting tasting table, ready made and gift wrapped packages, gallons of the good stuff (the olive oil), beauty products, cleaning products and more!

Prepare to be amazed (you may even want to sit down if you aren't already) when you read this extensive list of uses for olive oil and the products on offer at Rich Glen..

EVOO CAN:

BE USED TO COOK WITH
Rich Glens' EVOO has a higher thermal resistance than other oils such as sunflour or canola oil because of the fact that it is a predominantly monounsaturated fatty oil and because of the way that it is pressed in very low temps, using high speed rather than extensive heat in the process. Or, be eaten or drunk raw! It has huge health benefits - Antioxidant rich, high in vitamins and healthy fatty acids to name a few! drizzle it over a salad with some lime juice or dunk your bread in it! > You can buy this liquid gold in bottles from 200ml to massive tins of up to 20litres!

BE USED TO DRESS YOUR SALAD OR FLAVOUR MEAL
There is an enormous range of flavoured oils, home made sauces, chutneys, relishes, pates and salad dressings on offer - with a flavour for everyones palette! *One of my favourite meals to cook in the Winter is Rich Glens house made pasta (available in various flavours), roasted veggies, EVOO and fresh parmesan.

HIT THE SWEET SPOT
There are all natural cordials, fruit curds, desert sauces, jams and honey (not olive based obviously but the bees draw plenty of pollen straight from the olive tree flowers!).

BE MIXED IN AMONGST DRY INGREDIENTS TO CREATE THE PERFECT BLEND
There is a wide range of the most flavoursome dukkahs to sprinkle over a meal or eat with crispy bread and oil on a platter as well as hearty breakfast granola!

BE USED IN YOUR MORNING CUPPA!
The range of herbal teas using olive leaf as a base ingredient is amazing! (i'm a massive fan of a nice warm pot of tea, I drink it all day everyday! in fact I'm drinking the Vitamin C one as I'm perched up on my couch writing this article!).

BE USED TO WASH AND CARE FOR YOUR HAIR AND SKIN
Using natural, chemical free soaps, cleansers and creams is so refreshing - it's nice to know your skin and hair aren't soaking up a bunch of nasties! you can buy hair and skin treatments, soaps and body wash, deodorant, body oils, face masks, cleansers, hair styling product, full body moisturisers, massage oils and plenty more!

BE USED TO PROTECT YOUR SKIN FROM IRRITATIONS AND REPEL MOZZIES!
There are anti-itch creams to treat skin irritations, dryness or cracking as well as natural alternatives to insect repellent.

BE USED AS A SAFE AND NATURAL WAY TO CARE FOR YOUR LITTLE ONES!
There is a whole range of products specifically for babies - bedroom spray, soaps, body oils and all!

CLEAN YOUR HOME!
Anti-chemical, DIY cleaners are increasingly popular, people are starting to realise the amount of toxic substances they're inhaling when using old school cleaning products - Ros has come up with the perfect concoctions to clean and disinfect your home, totally free of nasties!

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You can see as you enter the humble, homely farm that the team of staff are considered part of the Richglen Family family also. Everyone does their part making sure everything gets done and the farm operates efficiently. I had the pleasure of meeting with Ros and doing a small tour of Rich Glen, it was such an eye opener and an inspiration to whiteness first hand the hard work that goes in to this empire she and her family have built. It's the little things, like the way the staff bounce around in the workplace, the bubbly persona they carry when communicating with each other and customers as well as their dedication to their jobs that make you realise just how wonderful it must be to be a part of the family. Everyone works as a team, from out in the paddocks on the tractors, to the processing sheds, to the packaging rooms, to the kitchen/cafe - it's all busy busy!

'I TRY TO BE A WOMAN OF ALL TRADES ON THE FARM AS WELL AS IN THE CAFE, GETTING OUT AND DOING THE NITTY GRITTY JOBS WITH THE STAFF IS VERY IMPORTANT I FEEL' - ROS VODUSEK.

The term 'Local Gem' gets tossed around quite frequently, but while many businesses and attractions do have plenty to offer, a lot of them don't necessarily stand out as a real point of difference - Rich Glen though, certainly isn't one of those.. this place is astounding! you won't leave without feeling super impressed and amazed by all that goes on and appreciate the hard work that goes in to every. little. thing! All that you see and do/eat and drink here has been extremely well thought out and prepared by the amazing, hard working team that make up Rich Glen Olive Estate. It is the perfect day out with family and friends, there is plenty of room for everyone to explore the farm and soak up the country sunshine and fresh air!

Kids will have an absolute ball here while the adults sit back and relax under the porch or out in the sun - coffee and delicious house made eats in hand!

There are animals to visit, cubby houses to poke their heads in to, a veggie patch to play hide and seek in, games scattered all around the lawn, bikes to ride around as well as a playground - they certainly won't get bored.

While you're visiting, it pays to go over to 'Pops Storage Shed' where there are thousands of historical keepsake bits and pieces both big and small that resemble different points in the life of the farm and its owners - it's interesting to know and it helps develop a deeper understanding and emotional connection to Rich Glen.

I head out to the cafe frequently with friends for a nice catch up out in the sun. I treat myself to a bite to eat from the breaky to lunch menu to accompany a beautiful cuppa! I also take the chance to stock up on beauty products (the cream deodorant and body oil are two of my regular purchases!), the premium EVOO or a garlic infused oil as well as my absolute favourite product on offer - the famous poppy seed salad dressings! there are sooo many flavours and they're all delicious! You can get everything from sweet to spicy to tangy to zesty and more! A Sunday BBQ isn't complete without a RG salad dressing and homemade tomato or shiraz sauce.

If you're looking for a nice spot to kick back and relax for a few hours over a long breaky or lunch, or even just a place to be able to sit outdoors and embrace the country scene - Rich Glen is perfect! It is definitely on my list of 'must visits' when advising people on how to make the most of Yarrawonga/Mulwala.