Top Notes - bright & invigorating. Lemon Peel, sea salt and dill seed.
Heart Notes - emerging after the top fades. Juniper berries, coriander seed, angelica root.
Base Notes - soft and warm. Orris root, liquorice root, and the umami flavour and texture from giant kelp.
Fresh, saline and invigorating with a citrus lift. Soft, warm undertones of anise - capturing the coastal character, where the ocean meets the land. Best served as a dirty martini without the brine, or with good quality tonic and a slice of lemon or cucumber.
While many Kiwi spirit brands lean into the land, we lean into the mind — showcasing New Zealand’s ingenuity, originality, and willingness to experiment. Unlikely Companions is a contemporary gin brand driven by a uniquely New Zealand take on creativity. Our gins pair individually distilled botanicals, blended with precision for layered but refined flavour experiences.
They’re inspired by the world of perfume — not just in aroma and design, but in the way we invite drinkers to savour and explore them like a fine wine. Co-founder Simon’s fine wine background and Alice’s experiential marketing expertise have resulted in a sensory-forward spirit range that’s elegant, unexpected, and grounded in thoughtful creativity.
The distillation process at Unlikely Companions starts with a very pure grade whey-derived base spirit, sustainably sourced from NZ grass-fed dairy. We feel that whey base spirit tends to produce a smooth and silkier, more textural gin.
The next step is to macerate botanicals pre-distillation, and then each and every botanical is separately micro- batch distilled, at various temperatures and lengths of time, with only the hearts of each distillation retained, with the lower quality heads and tails discarded.
Heart Notes - emerging after the top fades. Juniper berries, coriander seed, angelica root.
Base Notes - soft and warm. Orris root, liquorice root, and the umami flavour and texture from giant kelp.
Fresh, saline and invigorating with a citrus lift. Soft, warm undertones of anise - capturing the coastal character, where the ocean meets the land. Best served as a dirty martini without the brine, or with good quality tonic and a slice of lemon or cucumber.
While many Kiwi spirit brands lean into the land, we lean into the mind — showcasing New Zealand’s ingenuity, originality, and willingness to experiment. Unlikely Companions is a contemporary gin brand driven by a uniquely New Zealand take on creativity. Our gins pair individually distilled botanicals, blended with precision for layered but refined flavour experiences.
They’re inspired by the world of perfume — not just in aroma and design, but in the way we invite drinkers to savour and explore them like a fine wine. Co-founder Simon’s fine wine background and Alice’s experiential marketing expertise have resulted in a sensory-forward spirit range that’s elegant, unexpected, and grounded in thoughtful creativity.
The distillation process at Unlikely Companions starts with a very pure grade whey-derived base spirit, sustainably sourced from NZ grass-fed dairy. We feel that whey base spirit tends to produce a smooth and silkier, more textural gin.
The next step is to macerate botanicals pre-distillation, and then each and every botanical is separately micro- batch distilled, at various temperatures and lengths of time, with only the hearts of each distillation retained, with the lower quality heads and tails discarded.
