About Willowbank (silent)
Willowbank was established in Dunedin by the Baker family, with distillation beginning in 1969 and whisky released under the Wilson’s name from 1974. It became the centre of modern New Zealand whisky for much of the late 20th century and was known under several names, including Willowbank, Wilson’s, Lammerlaw and Milford. At the time, it was also regarded as the world’s southernmost whisky distillery.
Seagram acquired the distillery in 1981 and production continued until 1997, when the site was sold to Foster’s and mothballed. The stills were later sent to Fiji, while the remaining casks were eventually rescued and taken on by The New Zealand Whisky Company, which has bottled parts of the surviving stock and helped preserve Willowbank’s place in New Zealand whisky history.