Arrowtown builders turn shed into award-winning gin distillery
Looking down from the top of Queenstown’s Cecil Peak, drinking gin infused with thyme plucked from bushes in Arrowtown, Stu Clark admits to feeling proud of his award-winning drink.
Clark and his mate Hamish Bourke were working as builders in Arrowtown when they one day got “yarning” about how good it’d be to own their own gin distillery, a dream not uncommon for the Kiwi bloke.
In 2018, the mates had been doing some building work on Clark’s shed, which wasinitially intended to be a workshop, but became a distillery where the friends now make their Rifters Gin.
By 2020, the pair had bagged a gold medal at the San Fran Spirit Awards, followed by a silver the year after.
They have also won medals at the London and New Zealand Spirits competitions.
“We just got on really well and both love gin and wanted to try this thing. We haven’t balanced [the books] out yet, but it is about going for it. We are proud of what we’ve done so far,” Clark says.
Rifters are makers of small-batch premium gin, which uses botanicals and local herbs like thyme, mānuka honey, coriander and mint.
They started trialling recipes for their mates and after loads of good feedback, Clark says they “gave it a crack”.
The men are passionate about bringing people back to their region after a tough couple of years for hospitality during the pandemic.
Clark says lockdowns and low visitor numbers to the region affected sales, but numbers are on the way back up with the help of local tourism.
On Saturday, the company took two competition winners from Mt Maunganui up to Cecil Peak in a helicopter to taste their gin at height.
They wanted to showcase the area that initially inspired them to make gin.
Clark says the dream is to one day open up a public distillery allowing people to visit and have a taste of what their region has to offer, and perhaps link up more with tourism operators like they did over the weekend.
The inspiration behind the name “Rifters” and their bottles, comes from Arrowtown’s gold mining history, he says.
A visit to the local museum showed a connection between Arrowtown's gold mining history and gin, a drop the foragers made for themselves while panning for gold 150 years ago.
“Our bottle is a representation of this Arrowtown history and the land that surrounds us, coloured to match the lakes and rivers that flow through Central Otago,” Clark says.
"The mountains, lakes and rivers that surround us have captured our imagination for years. They provide the purest ingredients used to make our gin.”
Poll: Should we be giving the green light to new mining projects? 💰🌲
The Environmental Protection Authority announced this week that a proposed mine in Central Otago (near Cromwell) is about to enter its fast-track assessment process. A final decision could come within six months, and if it’s approved, construction might start as early as mid-2026.
We want to know: Should mining projects like this move ahead?
Keen to dig deeper? Mike White has the scoop.
-
53.5% Yes
-
46.5% No
A riddle to start the festive season 🌲🎁🌟
I'm a fruit. If you take away my first letter, I'm a crime. If you take away my first two letters, I'm an animal. If you take away my first and last letter, I'm a form of music. What am I?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!
Want to stop seeing these in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
‘Tis the season to not get scammed ...
As Christmas gift shopping moves increasingly online, scammers are ramping up their activity across the country.
Dunedin’s Investigation Support Unit is seeing more and more people fall victim to scams and other fraudulent activity, particularly on Facebook Marketplace.
There are a few ways to avoid the scams and keep yourself safe doing online trades this holiday season, says Southern District Service Delivery Manager Senior Sergeant Dalton.
🔒 “A good first step when looking to purchase something on Marketplace is to check when the seller’s Facebook profile was created. If it’s very recent, there is a higher risk that they have just created this account for a one-off fake item.”
🔒 Another important step is to make sure the seller’s profile name and bank account name match up. “We’re seeing a lot of scammers claiming their bank account name is different because it belongs to their partner or family member - that’s a huge red flag."
🔒 “When you’re selling, never trust a screenshot anyone sends you showing that payment has been made. Check your own bank account to make sure a payment has gone through."
🔒 “Quite frankly, it’s best for all parties to agree to pay, or be paid, for items in cash and in-person. Ideally in a public place with CCTV coverage."
🔒 "If you’re buying a car, check Carjam.co.nz to see if it’s stolen or if there’s money owed on it.”
A reminder: Suspicious activity can be reported on 105
Loading…
