New Zealand Gin-naissance!
I was on the radio today! On the National Program – Nine to noon show, talking about the New Zealand Gin-naissance and how we make our Curiosity Gins.
Click on the link below to listen if you missed it, hopefully you will find it interesting!!
https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018664848/nz-s-gin-naissance
GOLD for Curiosity Negroni Special!
GOLD for Curiosity Negroni Special!
Great news! Our Negroni Special won a Gold Medal at this year’s prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
Recipe #23 and Pinot Barrel Sloe also picked up Bronze medals giving Curiosity Gin an exciting Medal Haul for 2018.
New Zealand’s First Sloe Gin!
Our Pinot Barrel Sloe is a strictly limited single batch. Made the traditional way, we brought from the UK the finest Sloe Berries available and steeped them in Curiosity Gin for several months in a barrel that was previously used to age Otago Pinot Noir. Sweetened with natural sugar before bottling, the resulting liqueur is a luscious red colour and exhibits the smooth and slightly bitter, intense sweet fruit flavours of a classic Sloe Gin with an added back note of the fruity Otago Pinot from the barrel in which it was made. his is New Zealand’s first and only Sloe Gin (as far as we know anyway!) and only 274 bottles were available from this one and only barrel.
Serving Suggestions: Fabulous in a long drink with Tonic, as a Sloe Gin Fizz or with Champagne as a Sloe Gin Royale it’s the perfect drink for a Kiwi summer
Founders Celebrate First Anniversary
Founders Meeting on 1st Anniversary
On Friday the four founders of The Spirits Workshop (Antony, Rod, Bernard and Sam) got together to discuss and celebrate the first year of operation. It was a fun evening looking back at some of the achievements of the past 12 months;
– releasing two gins and a vodka
– building a great stock of ageing whisky barrels
– winning a Gold, two Silvers and a Bronze at international competitions
– Selling our first private whisky cask
– making our first export order
and looking forward to the next twelve months and the things we have planned;
– release two more new gins before Christmas
– add the first “special” barrels to our whisky ageing program
– more than double the volume of whisky ageing
– to set up and run New Zealand’s first gin festival
– expand our distribution in New Zealand and export markets
And of course continuing to have fun and make fabulous spirits!
NZ Gin Association Formed
Growth of the GIN Market see’s establishment of NZ Gin
Distilling gin is a growing industry in New Zealand and with it sees the establishment of an association of New Zealand craft gin producers, NZ Gin.
Internationally Gin is the fastest growing category in alcoholic beverages. By 2020 Gin is expected to overtake scotch whisky in total sales in the UK and last month spirits earn’t more money for the UK government than beer for the first time ever, with Gin leading the charge. In Australiasia there are now over 100 gin distilleries and the market is growing.
Artisan craft gin maker, Antony Michalik, Chief Gin Officer for Curiosity Gin and a founding member of NZ Gin, believes the establishment of a New Zealand craft gin producers association is a real reflection of the strength of the growing industry here. “New Zealand is a relatively small player in this market but we are packing a lot of punch and have a real point of difference in the type of product we are producing. By bringing the various craft gin makers together as an association we have greater power to grow the market, promote our gins within New Zealand and on the international stage as well as co-operate on exports in order to achieve greater efficiencies and economies of scale.”
Craft spirit launches grew 265% globally from 2011 to 2015 and New Zealand is following this trend with more craft distilleries opening each year. The consumer led demand for more authentic, more distinctive, more local, less processed and more interesting spirit brands is driving demand.
“New Zealand is known around the world for our unique wines and increasingly for our great craft beers. There is now also a burgeoning craft gin scene, and New Zealand craft gin is beginning to get recognised. Like the wines and craft beers, our gins are a real reflection of the taste of New Zealand. Taking our inspiration from the land and utilising local ingredients such as manuka, kawakawa and our pure artesian water, plus a wide variety of other local botanicals gives us an edge and the ability to produce a unique product in the market” says Michalik.
NZ Gin’s initial goals are to promote New Zealand made gins and grow the overall gin market in New Zealand, establish an annual gin festival and facilitate cooperation amongst members on export opportunities.
Founding member brands are Curiosity Gin, Vaione, Hidden World, Rogue Society Distilling Co, Sacred Spring, Karven, Ariki, Juno Gin, Reid & Reid, Broken Heart, Black Robin, Elemental and Lighthouse.
