Touring Greenbar Distillery

Southern California is home to several breweries and wineries but distilleries remain elusive. As much as I love a good glass of beer or wine I’m a bigger cocktail fan. So, when I heard that Greenbar Distillery, based in Los Angeles, was open for tours I was ready to go!

Greenbar Distillery is located on the outskirts of the Arts District near Downtown LA. It’s on a small side street surrounded by other manufacturers – don’t expect any trendy coffee houses or sausage shops here! Since it was a Friday evening the area felt a bit deserted and I wondered if Shannon and I would be the only ones on the tour. I was wrong. We were joined by about a dozen other folks eager to learn about craft spirits.

While mingling in the lobby we were invited to discover the various ingredients Greenbar uses. The company is completely organic and is proud to showcase the all natural ingredients used in its recipes. It was fun to see and smell all the herbs and spices going into the liquor.

Soon we were off to tour the warehouse and learn all about the distilling process. Greenbar remains a small operation and every portion of the process is a hands on affair. As it was evening they weren’t in production but it was still interesting to see exactly where the spirits are created.

                                                                       Those are some big barrels!

Soon enough we were led upstairs to the tasting bar. Woohoo!

Going in I was aware of Greenbar’s Fruitlab liqueurs and Bar Keep bitters but I didn’t realize just how vast their line is.

From Tru Vodka and Gin to Ixa Tequila to Slow Hand Whiskey to Crusoe Rum Greenbar has you covered. State law limits tastings to 6 per visit and it was SO hard to decide which to try.

As a whiskey fan I couldn’t pass up trying the Slow Hand. The Six Woods Malt was fantastic and I was super bummed I couldn’t take home a bottle (the state law strikes again).

Of course, I had to sample the Fruitlab. The jasmine liqueur and orange brandy are out of this world. The orange brandy tastes of fresh squeezed oranges and the jasmine liqueur hits just the right amount of floral notes. These could be purchased at the distillery and you can be sure I took home a bottle of the orange brandy.

Taking the tour was a fun way to spend a Friday evening. I’m so glad Greenbar decided to headquarter in LA.