The Wee Smokehouse

A tale about how buying a business in retirement takes on a life of its own and how the dedication of Juliet and Alasdair McLeod built the business and created Outstanding Food Producer Award-winning smoked products. They won a Gold Medla in 2023 with the The Wee Smokehouse, Gravadlax  and a Silver Medal with their The Wee Smokehouse, Cold Smoked Salmon.

It’s early morning in mid-Canterbury; a silver frost shimmers in the morning light, scaling the endless fields. At the base of a sleeping mountain is a river, hushed and still under an orange sky. Although much of the land is quiet, there is a whisper on the banks of Rangitaha Rangitata—a few wee sheds have already stoked to life. Woodsmoke dances on the breeze, the scent of salmon mingling with the sweet mist and the smell of toast. A kettle calls an end to dawn. There is a new day and much to do.

Here is where some of the country’s finest salmon is cured. Just 200 steps from the McLeod family’s backdoor, the team from The Wee Smokehouse hand slice and smoke over 100kg of the high alpine goodness daily. In 2023, they achieved culinary acclaim with a Gold Medal for their Gravadlax and a Silver Medal for their Cold Smoked Salmon at the Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards.

With courage, a thirst for knowledge, and all hands on deck, the family grew a boutique business into a standout New Zealand producer distributing nationwide. But going from greenhorns in Fairlie to gold near Geraldine is no wee feat, and how did they manage it from a humble home HQ?

2018 Juliet and Alasdair McLeod purchased Fat Albert's Smokehouse from Keith and Alison Hatton. The motive was simple: a hobby project for semi-retired Alisdair Alasdair, who’d smoked fish most of his life. His weeks would now consist of a bit of farming, a bit of curing, and a bit more golf. But as the pair delved into the business, they discovered an even greater passion for the craft, along with some fantastic potential.

They knew this would be more than a hobby, so son Tom and daughter-in-law Jennifer were called in. The four bought the business together, and the story of The Wee Smokehouse began. But there was much to learn with little time. The family needed to get up to speed fast. Although Alisdair Alasdair knew his way around a salmon, Jennifer had never so much as hung a fillet. 

Fat Albert's had been in operation for a decade, and proprietor Keith had indispensable knowledge to pass on. Not only was it necessary to retain the art behind priceless recipes such as the Gravadlax (now their best seller and a gold medal winner), but there were also the ins and outs of day-to-day operations and an established relationship with chief supplier High Country Salmon to maintain.

So, naturally Alisdair, Juliet, and Jennifer took turns living and learning out of a house bus on-site near Fairlie. From this satellite home, they soaked in all they could from Keith. “A lot of reading and research was required,” Jennifer admits. Getting to know it all, plus learning how to talk salmon shop, was challenging. But after several intense weeks of on-and-off living, the McLeods were ready to take the reins.

By August 2018, they had built a new smokehouse at the family farm near Geraldine and shipped all the remaining equipment from Fat Albert’s. One Two smokers became two three—one two hot and one cold. They erected two chillers, set up a large vacuum packer, and saw production improve from 80 kilograms per week to over 100 kilograms of cured salmon daily most days. But it wasn’t enough for this new generation of smokers to simply carry on Keith’s legacy.

Jennifer’s creativity saw The Wee Smokehouse expand from its core products to an array of delicious offerings. Soon, scents of all kinds accompanied early morning tea and toast—Cold-smoked Beetroot Salmon, Gin-cured Salmon, Truffle Salmon, and Refined Sugar-free Honey & Thyme Hot-smoked Salmon. With such an innovative palette, critical acclaim would prove inevitable.

With the flames well and truly fanned, the business kept growing. Alisdair Alasdair and Juliet took a step back, and today, the once-novice Jennifer is at the helm. Her vision is to turn The Wee Smokehouse into something more than a ‘wee’ smokehouse. The former “family affair" now employs a three full-time staff members and two part-time workers during busy periods. Next on the cards is to add a third fourth smoker, build a larger smokehouse, and diversify the product line to include a broader range of cured meats.

The Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards continues to highlight what Kiwi families dedicated to providing quality goods from our glorious backyard can do. Often, food production can be an exclusive engagement—animals, land, equipment, and know-how passed through generational bloodlines. The McLeods are an example of diving into the unknown and working hard to resurface with excellence. Learning a millennia-old method to preserve has inadvertently preserved the method itself.

With not-so-wee plans in motion and Jennifer at the helm, there is no doubt they’ll feature at the awards again soon. Until then, if you’d like to check out their range, including the gold-medaled Gravadlax and silver Cold Smoked Salmon, you can do so here.