Hollywood’s ‘first’ official distillery opens in LA
Housed in a former mortuary in Los Angeles, Hollywood Distillery will offer spirits made with Californian ingredients.
The project, which has been in the making since 2016, comes from long-time friends Larry Neuberg, Jeff Zarrinnam, and Ferris Wehbe.
The three founders are behind small-batch spirits Zanja-Madre Bourbon Whiskey, Zanja-Madre Rye Whiskey, Nopalera Gin and Oasis Vodka.
The spirits will be produced on-site at the distillery, which the trio claim is the first ‘legal’ distillery in Hollywood.
Wehbe, Neuberg and Zarrinnam took inspiration from ancient distilling methods and California-grown ingredients in creating the spirits, which they first began experimenting with nearly 10 years ago.
Wehbe said: “At our core, Hollywood Distillery is about friendship. We all have deep ties to Hollywood and Los Angeles, and this project is a reflection of our shared history and love for the city.
“We wanted to create something special to bring the rich history of Hollywood through our craft spirits and share that with the community.”
The distillery is located on Santa Monica Boulevard, across the street from Hollywood Forever Cemetery. It will offer guided tastings, behind-the-scenes distillery tours and event hosting. The space itself – sporting an industrial design – is 5,400 square feet in size with capacity to host 60 guests, alongside 20 in the bar area.
Hollywood Distillery’s bar area has been decorated with black-and-white photos of Hollywood icons such Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, and Humphrey Bogart, while barrels of Bourbon and a wall case with rows of bottled house spirits are on display.
The tours will walk guests through the distillery’s production process – from fermentation to distillation to barrel ageing – including a look at its 1,000-gallon copper still, the distillery’s centrepiece.
Hollywood Distillery’s spirits are all made with locally sourced ingredients from California. The spirits are each named as a tribute to LA’s history.
‘World’s first’ vodka distilled from dates
The distillery’s inaugural spirit, Oasis Vodka, is distilled from organic Medjool dates planted and harvested in the Coachella Valley. The trio claim it is the world’s first vodka distilled from dates. Previously, it was developed off-site at R6 Distillery in El Segundo, California.
The rest of the portfolio includes a Bourbon, a rye whiskey and a gin.
Zanja-Madre Bourbon and Rye Whiskey are both crafted from 100% California-grown grains with the latter aged for seven years. The Zanja Madre name nods to LA’s first water irrigation system, an aqueduct that brought water to the city’s river.
Nopalera Gin is then distilled with locally sourced dates and botanicals, and is inspired by Hollywood’s roots in the nopal cactus fields of 1853.
Guests will be able to sample the spirits through guided tastings, which highlight their different ingredients and flavour profiles.
In addition to the visitor experiences, Hollywood Distillery will host local food trucks and vendors.
It can also be booked for private events and community tastings. It is open from 11am to 7pm from Thursday to Sunday.
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