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Scapegrace unveils new distillery in NZ
New Zealand-based spirits producer Scapegrace has cut the ribbon on its new distillery, which is the largest in the country.
The project has been eight years in the making, with four years spent trying to find a site in a specific location in New Zealand.
Speaking to The Spirits Business, Scapegrace Distilling’s co-founder and managing director, Daniel McLaughlin, explained: “The Scapegrace Distillery is located exactly on the 45th Parallel, which is not by accident. The 45th Parallel is the exact midpoint between the Equator and the South Pole. This unique location experiences extreme seasonal variations – intense heat and dryness in the summer, and very cold winters.
“This means over a 12-month period there is considerable ‘talk’ and influence between our new make spirit and barrels, providing a lot more depth and flavour over a shorter period of time. The early signs with flavour development that we have seen over the past three years has been extremely promising.”
Mclaughlin noted that there were no other geographical contenders for the location of the distillery due to the 45th Parallel’s extremes in temperature, “which is great for ageing whisky”. He added: “This site is also located on the banks of Lake Dunstan, which is glacial run off from the Southern Alps.”
The build cost NZ$30 million (US$17.8m/£13.95m), which was privately funded with a combination of equity capital raises with some debt, McLaughlin said. The distillery spans 3,000 square metres, and is made up of a head office, bottling facility, warehousing, a barrel hall, and the newly completed distillery, which includes single malt production, and a white spirits portfolio of gin and vodka.
The distillery is described as a beautiful balance of urban design meets a rural setting, being located on a 36-hectare property that overlooks both Lake Dunstan and Mount Pisa.
He explained that “everything about this build has had sustainability at the fore. We made the decision early on to use renewable hydro-electric power to run the boilers verses fossil fuels, used timber for the structure of the distillery building, certified green materials wherever possible and planted 7,000 native trees onsite.”
McLaughlin continued: “Throughout our distillery design, there has been no corner cut, no stone unturned to ensure that we are following authentic and traditional methods, but also equally as important showcase the very best of our distinct Scapegrace portfolio.”
The new facilities will allow Scapegrace to produce 160,000 cases of single malt whisky per annum and enough gin and vodka to meet its long-term forecasts.
Whisky production facilities at the new distillery include a purposefully designed 5,000-litre wash still and a 3,500-litre spirits still from Speyside Copperworks in Scotland. The production will follow the full traditional method from grain to glass.
McLaughlin highlighted the distillery’s focus on whisky, with its single malt whisky alone projected to generate an annual wholesale value of NZ$33m (US$19.5m/£15.3m) when running at full capacity.
“Our aim is to elevate New Zealand’s global profile as a producer of world-class spirits. Over the past 40-years we’ve seen New Zealand’s wine industry experience huge growth and that’s what we’re working to create for our spirits industry.”
When asked when Scapegrace expects to make the distillery’s first whiskies available to consumers, McLaughlin noted that the company finished commissioning in May, and is currently producing three one-tonne mashes per week while it scales up. “We will be continually monitoring the ageing progress to determine when we will release them,” he said, noting that Scapegrace is currently using “a combination of virgin French oak, ex-oloroso Sherry casks, first-fill Bourbon, and we’ve just started trialling some local central Otago pinot noir casks.”
Meanwhile the white spirits still at the facility is a 3,500-litre John Dore copper pot still from London, UK, which was built in 1959 and has been fully restored by the team to its original state.
Putting New Zealand spirits on the global map
Scapegrace celebrated a decade of being in business in 2024, and McLaughlin said opening the distillery was the ‘perfect way’ to celebrate 10 years of achievements.
“We began our journey in a small Grey Lynn office in Auckland 2014, and it’s been an incredible adventure since, where this new facility is an end product of our commitment towards the future”
“Over the years, we’ve achieved global recognition, winning major international awards and last year we hit a major milestone as we sold more than 100,000 cases of product. We’re New Zealand’s largest spirits producer and we’re proud to be putting New Zealand spirits on the global map.”
Going forward, he said that the company was “really passionate about creating a world where New Zealand is known as a nation that produces the finest spirits.
“The Scapegrace journey is only just beginning. We’re looking forward to creating a truly remarkable hospitality destination in years to come, so everyone can experience the brand and products on this stunning site.”
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