Countdown on to DramFest 2025

Australasia’s largest spirits education and tasting festival, DramFest, returns to the Te Pae Convention Centre in Ōtautahi Christchurch for three days from February 28 to March 2.

This year marks DramFest’s ninth biennial festival with more than 4,000 spirits enthusiasts expected to attend over the three days, along with visiting industry experts, and more than 400 different whiskies and dark spirits to sample from distilleries and independent bottlers from around the globe.

DramFest is a unique opportunity for enthusiasts to meet with overseas and local whisky experts including distillers, owners and brand ambassadors attending the event.

The festival was founded 18 years ago by Michael and Stella Fraser Milne of Christchurch’s Whisky Galore to get everyone in the trade together to showcase their wares to the whisky public.

International guests at the 2025 event include writer and educator Dave Broom; the founders/owners of Kilchoman Distillery, Anthony and Kathy Wills; founder and CEO of Foursquare Distillery, Richard Seale; Head Distiller of Starward Distillery, Carlie Dyer; and many more.

This year will also see 11 New Zealand whisky and rum brands at the event – the biggest showing ever. Amongst the line-up is the Pōkeno Whisky Company who have teamed up with Whisky Galore to produce an exclusive DramFest bottling created using a cask sent from Scotland to Christchurch in the 1950s. Whisky Galore have been babysitting this very special cask on the shop floor for the past 20 years and it has now been rebuilt and re-seasoned by Pōkeno’s Master Cooper and filled with Pōkeno whisky.

As well as the main event each day, DramFest offers special additional Tastings Sessions hosted by international and local whisky/rum experts, Spirits Forums with panels of visiting experts and The DramTrail, which showcases local hospitality hot spots.

W: Tickets and more details available at dramfest.co.nz