Ventura Spirits
Ventura Spirits: Your Local Distillery
Ventura Spirits Distillery is the place to check out if you are a spirit connoisseur or just looking for something new and interesting to do on the weekend. Being one of the only distilleries in Ventura County this establishment is quite unique. Ventura Spirits uses local produce such as strawberries, optunia, and apples in their spirits. This place is the epitome of “keeping it local”. On Friday through Sunday anyone 21 and over can stop by their tasting room and try their Vodka, Brandy, Prickly Pear Spirit, Gin, and a few mini cocktails featuring their spirits. Complementary tours of the distillery are also given upon request.
Ventura Spirits is located at 3891 N. Ventura Ave Ste. B2A, Ventura, CA 93001. Upon first impression, driving to Ventura Spirits seems sketchy because there are a few boarded up houses along the road. However, we can’t judge a book by its cover, because this place is a hidden gem. It is easy to miss Ventura Spirits because it is located on the side of a warehouse rather than the front. After we took our first lap around the warehouses we saw the distilleries mural, and right under the mural is the entrance. Parking is limited but should not be an issue because the distillery does not get packed like a brewery.
The first thing we noticed when going into Ventura Spirits was the sound and heat. There was a constant humm of a machine and obvious temperature increase. One really cannot expect this place to be quite and cool because there is large machines cooking up alcohol. The tasting room is small, with only four available seats. It cost $10 for the tasting and mini cocktails; however, if you buy a bottle of alcohol the tasting is free.
With each taster of spirit the bartender gives a little background about the product and what local produce go into it. We tried all 4 spirits and 3 cocktails. The only thing that bummed us out was that Ventura Spirits can only serve cocktails that are 1.5 ounces. Ventura Spirits cannot serve any larger cocktails during tastings because this is one of the many laws that distilleries must follow. Private events can be held at Ventura Spirits, where in that case full cocktails can be served via a cash bar.
After we sampled each of the spirits and cocktails we got a quick tour of the distillery. Ventura Spirits Distillery is small so the tour took about five minutes. Our tour felt slightly rushed because four other customers came into the tasting room as we were beginning our tour and our guide needed to be in the tasting room with them.
Overall, we would recommend this place for spirit connoisseurs who can really enjoy sipping on craft spirits. Those who aren’t accustomed to sipping spirits may not enjoy it as much; however, the cocktails are tasty. Even-though we are not spirit connoisseurs, each of the spirits at Ventura Spirits certainly had their own unique taste that anyone, connoisseur or not, could taste.
Price: $
Best time to go: Afternoon
Hours: Friday 1-5pm; Sat-Sun 12-5pm
Duration: 45 min – 1 hour
Kid Friendly: No
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Interested in Breweries as well? Check out our post about MadeWest Brewery in Ventura.
