Distillery tours
Distillery Tours in Virginia
Plan a distillery tour in Virginia: 9 distilleries to visit, with tastings and experiences you can book directly. Expect Craft Spirits, Bourbon, Single Malt and more. Highlights include Virginia Distillery Company, Spirit Lab Distilling, Silverback Distillery.
9distilleries
Catoctin Creek Distilling Company
Loudoun County's first legal distillery since Prohibition
A. Smith Bowman Distillery
Virginia's oldest continuously operating distillery
Ironclad Distillery Co.
Small-batch bourbon in a 1913 James River warehouse
About distillery tours in Virginia
Virginia has a strong claim to being one of America's oldest distilling regions, and its modern craft scene leans into that heritage with confidence. Catoctin Creek, which opened in Purcellville in 2009, is often cited as Virginia's first legal distillery since Prohibition, and the years since have produced a genuinely varied trail. Rye is something of a calling card here — Catoctin Creek built its name on an all-rye approach — but the state's nine featured producers span far more than that. Copper Fox, with sites in Sperryville and Williamsburg, focuses on single malt and hand-malted grain; Virginia Distillery Company works from a striking Blue Ridge campus with a Scottish-influenced single malt programme; and A. Smith Bowman carries a long bourbon lineage. Add Filibuster, Ironclad, Reservoir, Silverback and Spirit Lab to the mix, and you have a trail that runs from the wine-country hills of Loudoun County and the Blue Ridge foothills down to Richmond and the Hampton Roads coast. Because the distilleries fall into clear geographic clusters, Virginia suits a route built around two or three days, combining tastings with mountain scenery, historic towns and the state's well-established wine and cider country.
Following the Virginia trail
Virginia's distilleries arrange themselves into a few natural clusters, which makes route-planning straightforward. The densest concentration sits within reach of Washington, D.C. and the northern Virginia wine country, where Catoctin Creek anchors Loudoun County and Copper Fox's Sperryville site sits in the Blue Ridge foothills near Shenandoah. Heading southwest toward Charlottesville and Nelson County, Virginia Distillery Company occupies a large campus with mountain views often compared to Speyside, making it a scenic centrepiece. Richmond forms a second hub, home to Reservoir Distillery and Spirit Lab Distilling, while Hampton Roads brings in Ironclad Distillery Co. and Copper Fox's Williamsburg location on the coast. A. Smith Bowman near Fredericksburg and Filibuster and Silverback fill in the corridors between. A satisfying trail might start in the north among the rye and single malt makers, work down to the Blue Ridge around Charlottesville, then finish in Richmond or on the coast, letting the changing landscape mark the stages of the journey.
Distilleries worth prioritising
Where you focus depends on your taste. For rye, Catoctin Creek is the obvious starting point, having built its identity around 100 percent rye whiskey. For single malt, Copper Fox stands out as a hand-malting pioneer, while Virginia Distillery Company offers a Scottish-influenced take on single malt in a particularly memorable setting. Bourbon and traditional American whiskey lovers will want A. Smith Bowman, which carries one of the state's older distilling lineages, and Reservoir Distillery in Richmond is known for grain-forward whiskeys. Ironclad Distillery Co. in Newport News gives the coastal end of the trail its own character, and Filibuster, Silverback and Spirit Lab add further range across styles and settings. If you can only manage one cluster, the northern Virginia group around Catoctin Creek and Copper Fox delivers strong contrast between rye and single malt within a compact, scenic area.
Where to stay & eat nearby
Virginia's distillery clusters overlap neatly with some of the state's best food and lodging. In the north, the Loudoun County and Shenandoah foothills are wine and cider country, with inns, farm restaurants and tasting rooms making it easy to build a weekend. Around Charlottesville, you can pair a visit to Virginia Distillery Company with the city's noted restaurant scene, Monticello and the surrounding vineyards. Richmond offers the widest urban choice, with a lively dining and cocktail culture close to Reservoir and Spirit Lab. On the coast, the Williamsburg and Hampton Roads area combines Copper Fox and Ironclad with historic sites and seafood. Across all of these, the distilleries sit comfortably within Virginia's broader agritourism trails, so combining spirits with wine, cider and local produce is the norm rather than the exception.
Frequently asked
- Which is Virginia's oldest craft distillery?
- Catoctin Creek in Purcellville is widely cited as Virginia's first legal distillery to open since Prohibition, having begun operating in 2009. A. Smith Bowman, however, carries a much older distilling lineage in the state.
- Is Virginia known for a particular style of spirit?
- Rye is something of a signature, with Catoctin Creek building its reputation on an all-rye approach. That said, the state is unusually varied, with notable single malt from Copper Fox and Virginia Distillery Company, plus bourbon and grain-forward whiskeys elsewhere.
- How are the distilleries spread out across the state?
- They fall into clear clusters: northern Virginia wine country near D.C., the Blue Ridge around Charlottesville, the Richmond area and the Hampton Roads coast. This makes it easy to plan a route around two or three regions over a long weekend.
- Can I combine a distillery trip with wineries?
- Very easily. Virginia's distilleries overlap with established wine and cider country, especially in Loudoun County and around Charlottesville, so many visitors mix spirits, wine and cider tastings on the same trip.
- Where is the best base for a first Virginia distillery trip?
- Northern Virginia works well for first-timers, putting you near Catoctin Creek and Copper Fox's Sperryville site within scenic, compact distances. Charlottesville and Richmond are strong alternatives if you want more dining and lodging options.
- Do Virginia distilleries offer tours as well as tastings?
- Many do, including larger operations like Virginia Distillery Company and A. Smith Bowman. Tour availability and hours vary by producer and season, so it is worth checking ahead, particularly for guided experiences.