Reefton Distilling tries its hand at sanitiser

Following on from a successful capital raise in March , Reefton Distilling Co. has plans for their expansion well in hand, and hand sanitiser has had a role to play.

With the purchase of new premises completed that month, the distillery’s new site with both land and existing buildings is well suited for their immediate and longer-term needs.  Situated in Reefton on State Highway 69, one of the main routes into town running between Reefton and Inangahua/Westport, the new site is just 1.7km from their current building. 

Adjacent to Reefton’s historic railway station (built in 1892) the site enjoys uninterrupted views of farmland, the golf course and the stunning Paparoa, Brunner and Victoria Ranges. 

Plans for the new premises include a brewhouse and still room, warehousing, whisky maturation stores, plant room, and separate inwards/outwards goods, with capacity for a cellar door in the future.  Concepts for the existing buildings in addition to the operational fit out, include installing windows in some of the profiles to open the facility up to natural light and to maximise the views, as well as extensive landscaping.

Online orders provide business continuity

With the cellar door at their historic facility currently closed due to the Covid-19 emergency, Reefton Distilling Co. are classed as an essential service (Food & Beverage) and therefore able to continue to manufacture their small batch distilled spirits and sell online.  However, Founder and Chief Executive Patsy Bass commented that with Duty Free sales having ceased and on-premise customers unable to operate, they were facing an uncertain time. 

When essential products such as hand sanitiser began making the news with reference to lack of availability, the team at Reefton Distilling Co. decided to pivot to producing this sought-after product to help. Their capability to handle high volume alcohol and two Bachelor of Science (BSc) University of Otago graduate Distillers with science laboratory experience, meant they had the right knowledge, environment and equipment to go into production of this much needed product. So the team at the distillery set about creating hand sanitiser to a World Health Organisation (WHO) formula and, at the time of writing, have product bottled and awaiting labels for dispatch both direct online via www.reeftondistillingco.com and in bulk to emergency and other essential services.

Using social media to good advantage they have been able to continue to grow awareness and sales of their award winning spirts via online purchasing with contactless delivery.  Bass said that they have been overwhelmed by the support of their existing customers who have been continuing to purchase products and an enormous number of new customers. “When we saw the large number of online orders coming through after closing the cellar door, we cried. It was like a big warm cyber hug.”  Their small team is now working 7 days a week to keep up with demand for their spirits and liqueurs as well as the demand for their hand sanitiser. 

Looking to the future

With a heavy workload ahead, Bass says that they will be recruiting new roles as soon as they are able and the team will work to get their new site fully commissioned as quickly as possible “so that we are up and running in our new location when we emerge into our new normal.” 

This has meant working remotely with architects, electricians, and others. They also have plans to landscape the 1ha site and to plant hundreds (if not thousands) of botanicals including Horopito, Kahikatea, Rimu, Tarata, Toatoa, Juniper communis, citrus and berries. Bass said, “this will allow visitors to see and experience the botanicals used in our product range first-hand and means we can step into our garden to forage for our botanicals over time”.

Pictured: Shane Thrower (left), Patsy Bass and Nick Secker with ‘George’.