International Beverage acquires New Zealand’s Cardrona Distillery
Leading global drinks business International Beverage has today (13th September) completed its acquisition of Cardrona Distillery, one of the country’s foremost premium spirits producers. The acquisition includes the Cardrona Distillery and visitor centre near Wanaka in New Zealand’s Crown Range; plus Cardrona’s portfolio of super-premium brands including Cardrona single malt whisky, The Reid Vodka, The Source Gin and the Rose Rabbit liqueurs.
Cardrona Distillery founder and Managing Director Desiree Reid said: ‘This is an exciting day for all of us at Cardrona Distillery. Building Cardrona has been a remarkable journey, made possible through the work and support of many, many people. I’m thrilled that International Beverage shares our belief in Cardrona’s quality and potential as we embark upon the next chapter of our story together. I look forward to working with their team to bring our spirits to more people in markets around the world in the future.’ Desiree Reid and her family are delighted that Cardrona will have a new home from which to realise the potential of the company’s award-winning brands and usher them into an exciting new phase of growth, both in New Zealand and on the global stage. The acquisition is a reflection of more than 12 years’ of vision and labour, building an internationally awarded distillery.
For International Beverage, the deal will provide a foothold in the dynamic New World spirits category to complement its established and highly successful Scotch whisky and spirits brands which include Old Pulteney, Speyburn and Caorunn Gin.
Cardrona spirits are produced from grain to glass at the site and have earned multiple accolades since launch, including Gold at the World Whiskies Awards and a place on the World’s 50 Best Vodkas lists.
International Beverage will focus on investment in the purpose-built distillery site and maximising the potential of Cardrona’s brands in the core New Zealand, UK and USA markets. They will also deploy International Beverage’s global network to build select new routes to market. Desiree Reid, who founded Cardrona Distillery in 2015, will remain as Managing Director.
Malcolm Leask, Managing Director (UK) of International Beverage added: ‘A warm welcome to Desiree and everyone at Cardrona Distillery to International Beverage. We are delighted to have their skilled team and exceptional craft spirits join our business. The team has done an excellent job in building Cardrona’s super-premium brands to date with so much integrity, quality and potential for the future. We are very much looking forward to working with them to build on their success within our international network, as we strengthen our premium spirits portfolio for the global market’.
About International Beverage
International Beverage is the international arm of Thai Beverage Public Company Limited. It is one of the industry’s most dynamic global drinks businesses and specialises in developing distinctive, premium brands for global markets, with a portfolio that is led by a range of high-quality Scotch whiskies and some of the fastest growing premium spirits and beers. These brands are enjoyed by consumers in over 85 countries and include Old Pulteney single malt Scotch whisky, Hankey Bannister blended Scotch whisky, Caorunn Gin, Phraya aged rum, Mekhong Thai spirits, Chang Beer and Saigon Beer. www.interbevgroup.com
About Cardrona
Founded in 2015, Cardrona Distillery is situated in the beautiful Cardrona Valley, in the Crown Range Mountains of New Zealand. All Cardrona spirits are hand-crafted from grain to glass on site, and start with just three ingredients: pure Cardrona alpine water, malted barley and distillers’ yeast. The portfolio includes Cardrona Single Malt Whisky, The Source Gin, The Reid Single Malt Vodka and the Rose Rabbit Liqueurs. Founder Desiree Reid spent years researching distillation prior to establishing the purpose-built distillery. Cardrona’s The Reid featured in the World’s 50 Best Vodkas and Cardrona Whisky has been a category winner at the World Whiskies Awards for 4 consecutive years from 2020-2023.
