An overnight Reefton Distillery exploration

While the focus of this column is Nelson Tasman food and beverage, I also know Nelson people like to travel, Karen and we recently had a quick overnight trip to Reefton to visit the distillery there. While that was the main focus of our little sojourn we were delightfully surprised at every turn.

From outstanding pub food to great little shops trading in historic buildings, Reefton has something to interest anyone. There are many trails for the outdoor adventurer, skyrocketing interest in gold mining that is predicted to add 10% to Reefton’s population in the next few years, the old-school Broadway Tearooms and Bakery, that has a huge range of hand-crafted pies, pastries, biscuits and cakes. Then there’s the exceptional distillery.

But before we get to that let’s have a look at a few other things we enjoyed. Reefton is a gentle three hour+ drive, including a stop in Murchison for coffee and a short stroll. Rivers Café is our go-to because the coffee is perfect, the food is fresh and served with generosity. It’s also dog friendly inside so everyone can be comfortable on a wet day.

Just across the road is Hodgson’s General Store (not related to me as far as I’m aware). The store has seen a recent upgrade with a fresh coat of paint and refurbished interior. They sell everything from outdoor equipment and clothing to delicate giftware. We did manage to leave a few dollars with them!

When we reached Reefton we found our accommodation, a beautifully restored villa with multiple bedrooms and packed with the owners’ antique treasures. Check out Harold House, we can thoroughly recommend it. There are a couple of pubs in the little main street that also offer accommodation as well as great food.

We had lunch at Dawson’s Hotel where we were impressed not just with the food but the friendly service you always find on the ‘coast’. My burger was made using a Blackball Salami beef and bacon pattie, just faultless pub food. The chef went out of his way to prepare a gluten-free batter for Karen. Most places simply offer panfried fish as the gluten-free option, but not here, if you want crispy gluten-free batter with your fish then they make sure you get it. This is something other venues could learn from.

After our distillery visit we dined at Nourish in Wilsons Hotel. More great food including a wonderful rich beef curry for me. At Wilsons Hotel they have a small and developing wine club that meets once a month, we will be back to check that out.

The main course – Reefton Distilling Co., home to Little Biddy gin. Founded by Patsy Bass in 2017 to “create premium, hand-crafted spirits distilled in New Zealand’s West Coast rainforest”. Patsy was born in Reefton, moved away, visited regularly during her childhood and eventually bought a bach there 25 years ago, when the pull to her hometown became too much to ignore.

She and her husband decided to make their Christchurch home their bach and moved to live in Reefton in 2018. Patsy wanted to create a business that would help to revitalise the town after the closure of the Globe gold mine. After exploring many ideas, she settled on the idea of a distillery using the abundant rainfall and native botanicals from the surrounding hills. Patsy wanted to create a business Reefton could be proud of, and their Little Biddy Gin is helping them do just that.

Named after four-foot-tall Bridget ‘Biddy’ Goodwin who was an Irish migrant, who left her home country for the goldfields of Bendigo and Ballarat in Australia.  Biddy then worked in Collingwood and Tadmor before spending the rest of her life working goldfields on the West Coast. Biddy was considered a formidable force who worked tirelessly in an industry dominated by men. She died in Reefton 1899 aged 86.

What makes Reefton Distilling Co. a wonderful addition to Reefton? The abundant rainfall is amongst the purest on earth, having travelled thousands of km’s across the great southern ocean, untainted by landmass, before falling in a deluge. The native botanicals hand foraged from the surrounding rainforest, are infused into the spirit, giving the spirits their unique and authentic flavour.

We were hosted by distiller, Sam Wilson, who explained the distillation processes used for the various products in their ranges.

Nothing goes to waste here either. The heads and tails after the second distillation are returned to the next batch of distillation. As Sam says “It’s just raw spirit that is the first part of the distillation flow and last part, it isn’t suitable to use in creating a premium product. Many producers dispose of this, but by reusing it we have very little waste to dispose of.”

Little Biddy Gin is the fastest growing premium NZ gin brand in the country and has won awards at some of the world’s most prestigious competitions.  This year, their Moonlight Creek single malt whisky, and Gold Seeker Rye whisky were launched to 5-star reviews, with two more releases out soon. These fine spirits are competitively priced when the artisanal, small batch and traditional methods are considered alongside the exceptional quality of the spirit.

If you are visiting Reefton you can visit the Reefton Distilling Co. cellar door and explore the history of the distillery, sample some of their products and, of course, buy some to take home. You can pre-book a distillery tour, which is located less than 2km from the town centre and maybe even stay at Eva’s retreat, Patsy’s beautiful holiday home with breathtaking views of the Paparoa Ranges.

Reefton may be small and very easy to drive through, but we think a stop in this historic town, which has reinvented itself on the back of gold mining and a wonderful B corp. certified distillery, is worth spending a night or two in.

Check out www.toptastes.co.nz for my reviews of Little Biddy Gins or  www.reeftondistillingco.com for their full story and online shop.

Published in the Nelson Mail 03-10-2026