California Launches Free Distillery Trail Guide
The California Distillery Trail, a free online guide to craft distilleries statewide, is backed by a $470,000 state grant.
Updated on Nov. 9, 2026 in Cocktails
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Should state grant money be used to promote California spirits and farms?
The California Distillers Association launched the California Distillery Trail, a free interactive online guide to distilleries across the state. The trail is funded by a $470,000 grant through the California Department of Food and Agriculture's Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.
Why it matters
The initiative is part of a three-year effort to boost sales of California specialty crop-based spirits by 20% and create higher-value markets for California farmers. For Californians interested in local spirits, the guide offers a single place to find distilleries by region, spirit type and tasting room hours.
The trail is funded by a $470,000 grant from the California Department of Food and Agriculture's Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, and it targets a 20% sales increase for specialty crop spirits over three years. California has roughly 207 craft distilleries, and the average one partners with three farms for its ingredients.
The players
California Distillers Association
The industry group that launched the trail and runs its marketing campaign to promote California-made spirits.
California Department of Food and Agriculture
The state agency that administers the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program funding the trail.
The details
Visitors can search the free trail by region, spirit type and tasting room hours, and each member distillery gets a profile page that can list events and cocktail recipes. Current participants include Central Coast Distillery, Corbin Cash, SLO De Vie Distillery, Tin City Distillery and Willow Creek Distillery.
Timeline
Spirits began outselling beer and wine in the U.S. in 2022.
The California Distillery Trail launched online on November 9, 2026.
Promotional seminars and tastings begin in spring 2027 in San Francisco, Dana Point, the Central Coast and Sacramento.
The association will promote the trail through 2027 and 2028.
Season Trajectory
The trail extends the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program's goal of building farm-linked markets into the spirits sector, which has outsold beer and wine in the U.S. since 2022. The initiative is positioned as a multi-year push rather than a one-time launch, with promotional events planned through 2028.
Drinkers who want to visit California distilleries can use the free trail to find tasting rooms by region and check hours before traveling. Distilleries that join gain a profile page where they can list events and cocktail recipes for visitors.
The takeaway
Spirits makers can use the trail to reach customers directly, and drinkers can use it to find local distilleries and build cocktails around California-grown ingredients.
What happens next
Promotional seminars and tastings are scheduled to begin in spring 2027 in San Francisco, Dana Point, the Central Coast and Sacramento.
Further reading
Explore more cocktail coverage on the spirits and mixology trends shaping California bars.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Paso Robles Daily News.
Live Poll
Should state grant money be used to promote California spirits and farms?
