Innovative whisky brand wins inaugural award

Southland’s Auld Farm Distillery took out the Innovation Award at the inaugural 2022 Arable Awards, recognising the best grain growers in New Zealand.

Hosted by Federated Farmers, the awards recognised some of the best food producers in the country and Auld’s win cements the distillery as one to watch.

Auld Farm Distillery produces single malt whisky made from nine different grains grown on the farm – from the traditional barley, wheat and oats, to purple wheat, black oats and black barley. The land has been growing grain since 1883 and is owned and run by Rob and Toni Auld (pictured below), third generation farmers on the land.

By combining grain from the paddocks, pure water from their own spring and distilled in their onsite distillery, Auld whisky truly embodies a seed-to-sip philosophy.

The couple also make a range of gins from a base alcohol of oat, wheat, and barley. The benefit of using these grain bases delivers a luxuriously creamy texture to the gin.

Judges said Rob and Toni Auld’s enterprise was typical of the diversity, entrepreneurship and commitment to quality that New Zealand’s arable sector was known for.

Robert Auld says, “We know the origins and ingredients of our spirits because we grow, harvest and craft them ourselves.

“It’s about patience, curiosity and the desire to create a legacy for the future, beginning right here, in the southernmost farm distillery in New Zealand (and the world).”

The farm has been in the family for nearly 100 years and three generations and Rob and Toni wanted to ensure a sustainable future for the next generations, by producing something that showcases the best of the land. With young children of their own, the Auld’s have created something their children can continue for generations to come.

Visit https://www.aulddistillery.co.nz