Vicar’s Son Gin

Vicar’s Son is a small grain-to-glass distillery based in Mangapai, Northland, producing handcrafted gin, vodka and single malt whisky. Rather than purchasing neutral spirit, the distillery creates its own base alcohol from Canterbury-grown Gladfield malted barley, giving it control over the production process from fermentation through to the finished spirit.

The process begins by fermenting malted barley into beer, which is then distilled into whisky, further distilled into vodka and, for the gin range, distilled again with carefully selected botanicals. Individual gins can contain up to 15 botanicals, while production remains deliberately small, with only a handful of bottles produced in each batch.

Vicar’s Son produces several styles of gin alongside its Drops of God Vodka and The Monk Single Malt Whisky. Its gin collection includes London Dry and contemporary expressions featuring botanicals such as juniper, citrus, spices, cocoa, mandarin, saffron and pink peppercorns. The distillery has received recognition at New Zealand and international spirits competitions.

Now located in rural Northland, Vicar’s Son continues its small-scale approach from its Mangapai distillery, where visitors can experience tastings, bottle sales and tours on Sundays. The business also directs more than 5% of its revenue towards animal welfare initiatives.