New Zealand’s Ice Age Vodka International Hit

Media Release 13 May 2007

New Zealand’s Ice Age Vodka International Hit

New Zealand’s 26000 Vodka is selling ‘ice to the Eskimos’.

Case loads of the popular New Zealand made vodka are now being shipped to the country that made the spirit famous – Russia.

26000 Vodka is created using water from an ice age glacier reservoir discovered in the Tasman region of the South Island.

The water was created after the last ice age ended and huge glaciers retreated towards the South Pole. It became entrapped and for the next 26,000 years went through a natural purification process.

Subsequent tests by the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Science confirmed the authenticity of the water. Vodka maker Warryn Bermingham and his partner Ken Telfar set about creating 26000 Vodka using this water as a key ingredient.

The brand’s humble beginnings in a corrugated iron shed are a far cry from the international success 26000 Vodka is fast amassing. New export orders for the product are already in the tens of thousands of bottles.

Buyers in the USA, Israel, India and Russia are scrambling to get their hands on a bottle with 26000 Vodka having to increase staff numbers to keep up with the demand.

“We are thrilled with the success,” says Bermingham. “We had planned to produce 10,000 bottles this year but we sold that in just two months!”

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Distribution deals have already been signed with India, Israel and Russia and it’s the first time distribution companies from those countries have taken on a New Zealand product. A significant distribution deal with a North American company is already underway.

Bermingham said New Zealand Trade and Enterprise had helped the company investigate export markets and “make sure everything was legitimate.”

26000 Vodka’s recent move to a new site means the company will be able to produce 1200 litres of spirit a day at the new distillery compared to the former production rate of 200 litres per day.

A new order of 45,000 glass bottles from France has just been made for the recent export deals.

Bermingham says he is conscious of protecting the local natural resource and has taken an environmentally sustainable approach to the production of his premium product.

“We’ve been given a precious gift and we’re determined to respect that. We only harvest the water in batch amounts to protect this incredible resource. We also want to keep the business manageable and focus on the high-end vodka market,” says Bermingham.

The exposure of 26000 Vodka in a number of luxury magazines and websites in Austria, Singapore, Germany, Russia, United States and France has helped draw interest in export opportunities.

26000 Vodka is made with a triple distilled grain mixed with ancient Tasman paleowater and comes in pure Crystalline and infusions of organic Raspberry & Lemon Drop and Lychee. RRP $58. www.26000vodka.com

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