Dancing Sands
Our founders Sarah and Ben
first hit it off when they met through their corporate jobs. After managing a long distance relationship
between New York and London they decided to start a new chapter together in New Zealand. Eventually,
Sarah and Ben Bonoma both left their corporate careers and took a leap into the unknown to establish
Dancing Sands Distillery in 2016. Trading the corporate for the creative, and spreadsheets for stills, the
Bonomas risked it all to follow their dream: producing world-class spirits in what is the most beautiful
place on the planet.
Like all great partnerships, Sarah and Ben are more than the sum of their parts. Sarah’s cutting scientific
mind (she has a MSc in Genetics) is matched by Ben’s flavour-driven creativity. The result? A dynamic
distilling duo on a mission to bring a part of Golden Bay to the rest of New Zealand, and the world.
Golden Bay is a location like no other.
It’s one of the most remote places in New Zealand, and as such, still enjoys a largely untouched
environment.
The nearby mountains are filled with rich minerals – including gold, which gave the bay its name, and
brought people from far and wide to this corner of the South Island. Marble and limestone mountains
surround the region and make up the bedrock of its aquifers delivering the water in the region as some of
the purest on the planet – perfect for making gin.
