Massey has a gin-making tree on campus, but it’s for “research”.

Massey is leading a study about juniper berries - yes, the berries that make gin - with berries being harvested from a tree on the Manawatū campus, alongside other trees around the country.  

Professor Joanne Hort, Fonterra Riddet Chair in Consumer and Sensory Science says there are several elements to the study, “from propagating juniper trees, chemical analysis of NZ and European berries and making model gins from the berries to determine if a perceivable difference can be detected across the different types of juniper berries,” with research expected to take 12 months.  

According to Hort, there is one juniper berry tree on the Manawatū campus(!). Massive cheekily asked if this tree was available for student use, but sadly the tree is only available to the project team. Boo. But fear not, good news awaits. Part of the study involves sampling the difference between New Zealand gins and commercial gins, with Hort saying “the team will be recruiting tasters who are highly sensitive to aromas – essentially yes a student could volunteer if they had the time available over the duration of the study and were sensitive enough.” Whilst my nose isn’t strong, according to my ex I am highly sensitive, so here’s hoping. 

The study will run as a partnership between Massey, Taranaki-based Begin Distilling and Greentec Propagation. Bottoms up.