Ventura Spirits Company

I'm really beginning to enjoy Groupon. I don't use it often, but every now and then, something comes up that I want to try. In Vegas a few years back, I used it for tickets to Zombie Burlesque, (for the adults) and Nathan Burton Comedy Magic, (for the family), both well worth it. I've used it for Red Tandem Brewery last year, which I was thankful for because I now know that I won't likely head back there. I've used it for Gloria's Kitchen (one of my first entries, from 1/13/13, before I knew how to put pictures up), which I go to no matter what.

But when I saw a Groupon for Ventura Spirits Company, I was ecstatic. I knew it was there, but I had never tried any of their spirits, and I didn't know they had a tasting room. I bought it, mentioned it to a friend who bought one also, and suddenly it was couples night.

Located way up on the Avenues, in the basement of an old factory space, the distillery is a bit out of the way. It is, however, right off the Ventura River Trail bike path, if you happen to be out riding. Inside, it is very much a small scale, small batch kind of place, and there is a short, interesting tour led by James, one of the four owners.  He explained how they went about making their own still, and how they've repurposed various items to suit their needs. James mentioned that when it's bottling time, everyone in their distillery, plus family and friends, touch every bottle in some way.

James also discussed how they get their fruit for alcohol, and the types of alcohol they're making. Their alcohol is fruit based, and their fruit comes from local fields.

And as a reward for being good on the tour, there is the tasting!

The tasting room is a result in a change in their license, and has been open for about a year. Henry, another owner, was pouring each spirit, and then he also mixed a couple of simple cocktails to show how to use the alcohol. It's only open Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons. The actual tasting room space is quite small, being the former office of the distillery, and the eight or so other people there pretty much filled up the room.

I'm not much of a gin drinker, but I did like their gin. They also had two types of vodka, both of which I liked. There was a subtle flavor difference between the two, but too subtle for me to understand how one would work better for a martini then the other. My favorite, though, was the Opuntia, made with prickly pear, which means it is a close cousin of tequila. I thought it was very smooth, like a good tequila should be, and I could see how it would brighten up a margarita.

The whole adventure took about an hour, after which (since it was date night), we all headed to Lalos, just a few minutes away.

James mentioned that the goal was to open a restaurant at some point, and to have limited run spirits (the Persimonn Brandy was only available in the tasting room on this trip) in the tasting room, a reason to return. Also, if you buy a bottle there, they'll let you do a tasting for free.

I brought home a bottle of Opuntia, and I'm looking forward to using it for a margaritas on the rocks this summer.