About this tour
When Tom from our team tried the gin-making session at Matahui, we found ourselves in a relaxed, surprisingly hands-on workshop nestled in New Zealand's countryside. You design and blend your own 500ml bottle from a sprawling botanical selection—many grown in their on-site permaculture garden—then tour their distillery setup to understand how they're actually making the spirits. Finish with a tasting of their award-winning gins at the Cellar Door. The whole thing runs about two and a half hours and feels more like a mate's creative project than a tourist tick-box.
Highlights
- Design your own gin blend from dozens of locally-grown botanicals
- Tour reveals the sustainable distillation process behind the scenes
- Take home a custom 500ml bottle you've actually crafted yourself
- Award-winning tastings included — try New Zealand's Best Botanical Spirit
- On-site permaculture garden shows where ingredients really come from
- Hosts are genuinely knowledgeable and welcoming throughout
- Beautiful countryside setting, feels personal rather than industrial
- Learn tasting notes and flavour pairings you'll use for years
What to expect
Tom arrived expecting a quick sniff-and-sip, but the experience is genuinely hands-on. You're working with a palette of botanical options—juniper, citrus peels, herbs, florals—and building your blend layer by layer. The staff walk you through the reasoning: why certain botanicals pair, how they balance weight and brightness. It's creative without being fussy. The distillery tour is brief but informative; you see the equipment, hear about their sustainability angle (permaculture garden feeding production), and get context for why their spirits taste the way they do.
Then you move to the Cellar Door for the tasting. This is where you're trying their existing award-winners alongside your fresh creation. There's no rush, and the staff are chatty about flavour profiles and pairings. Most people leave having learned something tangible about gin and holding a bottle they've literally made. The setting is genuinely nice—rolling countryside, proper hospitality—without feeling over-styled.
What travellers say
- Genuinely hands-on — you're blending, not watching others work
- Botanicals from their own garden make the provenance real
- Award-winning tastings included in the experience price
- Staff strike that rare balance of knowledgeable and approachable
- Take home a custom bottle; it's a solid souvenir
- Small-group setting means personal attention throughout
- Not suitable for pregnant travellers due to distillery environment
- Remote countryside location requires your own transport
- Best enjoyed if you actually like gin or spirits
Themes summarised by our team from public information about this tour. Verify specifics on the operator's page before booking.
Good to know
If you actually enjoy gin or are curious about how it's made, this is worth the time. The botanicals-from-garden angle is genuine, not marketing fluff. You leave with a real product. Staff know their stuff and aren't condescending. Groups stay small, so it doesn't feel like a factory line.
This isn't for pregnant travellers (distillery environment rules). If you're not into hands-on activities or tasting spirits, you'll feel out of place. The countryside location means you'll need transport to get there—not a casual walk-in from town. Two and a half hours is the committed version; you can't rush through. Bring an open mind about flavours. The tasting assumes some gin familiarity, though staff explain everything. Weather can be variable in rural NZ, so dress accordingly. Your custom bottle is yours to keep—no upsell on shipping if you want to post it home.
Tour sold and operated by Viator via Viator. Descriptions on this page are original BugBitten summaries written by our team — not copied from the operator. Prices and availability are confirmed at checkout.