Walk-ins are welcome during opening hours — Friday to Sunday, 9 am to 4 pm. No booking required for the cafe or farm shop. For platters and large orders, please book ahead.

Pet friendly outside on a lead. Australian food rules mean dogs cannot come into the cafe itself, but the verandah and outdoor tables are happy territory.

Yes — farm tours need to be booked ahead. Get in touch through the contact form or give us a call and we will sort out a time.

Groups are welcome — please book ahead so we can have enough hands on deck. Schools, clubs, bus tours — drop us a line in advance and we will get organised.

No interstate shipping. We sell within roughly a 100 km radius of the farm — Gippsland, Bass Coast, Phillip Island, Mornington Peninsula, and south-east Melbourne. It is a deliberate choice. Fewer food miles, more provenance. The Stockists page shows the closest retailer to you.

Yes. Cheese platters, large orders, and wholesale enquiries are all welcome — please book ahead by phone or email so we can prepare the right cheeses on the day.

Homogenisation breaks the fat globules in milk apart under pressure so the cream stays mixed through the bottle. We do not do that. Bass River Dairies milk goes from the herd into the bottle whole — fat intact — which is why you will see the cream line sit on top. Shake before you pour.

The milk is pasteurised, as Australian dairy law requires for retail sale. What is different is that it is non-homogenised and non-standardised — we do not adjust the fat or protein. The milk goes into the bottle the way the cow gave it.

Because the pasture changes week to week. Spring grass lifts the protein and gives a rich, sweet milk. Summer feed shifts the balance toward higher fat. Winter hay and silage deepen the flavour. We do not standardise it — you are tasting the season.

One herd, one milk, no blending. The milk in our vat on a given Monday came from our cows the day before, eating whatever the season is giving them. Spring cheese is brighter, autumn cheese richer, winter cheese earthier. Same recipe, same cheesemaker — what changes is the land.

Most commercial brie is made from blended, homogenised milk and ripened on an industrial schedule. Bassine Queen comes from a single herd on a single farm with the fat structure intact, hand-rubbed with salt, and ripened on its own time. The result is a paste that softens from the rind in, with notes that shift through the season.

Yes — all our cheeses are made with pasteurised milk, in line with Australian regulations. The difference is in everything that happens after pasteurisation: single-herd milk, no blending, no standardisation, slow hand work.