Cardrona Distillery is an artisan single malt distillery in the Cardrona Valley, on the Crown Range road between Queenstown and Wānaka. It produces single malt whisky, single malt vodka, gin and a range of liqueurs, and operates a visitor centre with tours, tastings and a restaurant seven days a week.
### Background and ownership
The distillery was founded by Desiree Whitaker (formerly Reid), who began studying distillation in 2011, sold her farming business and moved to Wānaka in 2013, and spent time learning from established distillers overseas - including the late Dave Pickerell, previously master distiller at Maker's Mark. The Cardrona Valley site was built out and first spirit ran on 23 October 2015, with the first cask laid down on 5 November that year; the doors opened to visitors shortly before Christmas 2015. The business has been owned and operated by four New Zealand families - the Reids, Whitakers, Macleans and Falconers - and is now part of the International Beverage group.
The distillery's whisky has been recognised internationally. Its three-year-old release "Just Hatched" won the single malt whisky 12 years and under category at the World Whiskies Awards in 2020. The on-site restaurant has been awarded one hat in the Cuisine Good Food Awards.
### Visitor experiences
Guided distillery tours run daily on the hour from 10am, with the last departure at 3pm. The standard tour runs about 75 minutes and covers milling, mashing, fermentation, distillation and maturation, finishing with a tutored tasting. Shorter options include complimentary spirits tastings and whisky flights. The restaurant serves a seasonal menu of small and shared plates built around New Zealand produce, alongside cocktails, local wine and the distillery's own spirits.
A private experience is offered, personally guided by the master distiller and tailored to the group's interests, including tasting directly from the barrel and hand-filling a bottle to take away. Pricing and availability for private experiences are arranged directly with the distillery's bookings team.
### Group and MICE capability
Cardrona suits incentive and conference social programmes in several formats. The setting - a working distillery in an alpine valley roughly 45 minutes from Queenstown and 25 minutes from Wānaka - gives it natural appeal as an off-site destination rather than simply a stop. The combination of a structured, guided activity (the tour and tutored tasting), a hatted restaurant and an option for a bespoke private session with the master distiller means a group can be given a genuinely differentiated half-day or evening.
It works well as a component of a Queenstown-to-Wānaka touring itinerary, as a small-group VIP or board-level incentive, or as a partner activity paired with a wine-region visit. Because tour capacity is structured around scheduled departures, larger conference groups are best split across sessions or arranged as a private booking. Confirm current group capacity, exclusive-use options and event catering directly with the distillery, as published detail on function-space capacity is limited.
See more Queenstown incentive activities.
Details