Our Process
A quieter look at how Terane comes together
From Ingredient to Bottle
Every Terane release begins with the same idea. Let the ingredients speak clearly, and make only what feels considered enough to bottle.
This is not about volume or speed. It is about selecting ingredients carefully, preparing them properly, distilling with intent, and leaving enough room for each batch to keep its own character.
For a closer look at the ingredients behind the range, explore the Botanicals page.
Composed, Not manufactured.
Terane is not built from a formula.
It is composed, slowly, from the land around us.
Each batch begins long before distillation.
Outdoors. In motion. Paying attention.
Aotearoa offers a rare palette.
Native leaves, coastal growth, orchard fruit, wild herbs.
From first principles
Our base spirit is not bought in.
It is made here.
Sugar. Water. Yeast.
We distill through our 200 litre reflux column, meet Alice. Sixteen passes. Slow, controlled, deliberate.
The goal is not neutrality, but a foundation that carries flavour without fighting it.
Making our own spirit is not the easiest path.
But it allows complete control, from first fermentation to final cut.
Botanicals, gathered and chosen
Botanicals are selected with restraint.
Juniper leads. Always.
Everything else must earn its place.
Where possible, ingredients are foraged by hand.
From our bush to our coastline. From places that shape how they grow.
Some are familiar.
Others speak quietly of this place.
Hounouring the land, most are left behind.
Only a few are chosen.
Trial, then commitment
New expressions begin small.
They are tested on our 13 litre alembic still, this is Tammy. Adjusted, refined, reworked.
Only once the balance feels right do they move forward.
Production batches are distilled on our 50 litre gin still, Amelia.
Small runs. Close control. No automation.
This is not about scaling quickly.
It is about getting it right, then repeating it with care.
Cut by hand
Distillation is guided, not programmed.
Heads are removed cleanly.
Hearts are taken with precision.
Tails are left behind.
Temperature, flow, timing. All managed in real time.
The aim is clarity.
Not just in the spirit, but in how each element presents.
A small place, done properly
Terane is made in a small working distillery
in the heart of Tauranga.
Compact by design.
Purpose-built, not improvised.
Everything is within reach.
Every stage is hands-on.
It is not large.
It does not need to be.
Refining process. Adjusting instinct. Learning what to leave out.
Good spirit comes from repetition.
Better spirit comes from knowing when to change.
This is 14 years of practice in one bottle.
Small batch, by necessity
Each batch is intentionally limited.
Not as a statement.
As a consequence of how it is made.
Nothing is rushed.
Nothing is scaled beyond control.
When a batch sells out, it may return.
It may not.
71 bottles. For our customers. Our friends. Our comunity.
From place, not process
Terane is shaped by where it is made.
By sea air.
By forest growth.
By the way ingredients behave here, not somewhere else.
This is not about replicating a style.
It is about expressing a place.
Quietly. Precisely. Without compromise.
We hope you will share it with us.
Botanicals
The ingredients, leaves, peels, roots, and wild aromatics that shape each expression.
A considered approach
Making less allows each release to stay more considered. It leaves room for subtle variation, more attention during distillation, and a final spirit that still feels alive rather than standardised.
Foraged
Some ingredients are gathered in small quantities where season, place, and condition shape their character.
Distilled
Each batch is run with deliberate cuts, keeping what adds clarity, texture, and balance to the final spirit.
Bottled
Finished in limited runs, with enough restraint to let each release keep its own identity.
