San Diego Distillery
Overview of the Distillery
San Diego Distillery is a craft distillery based in Spring Valley near San Diego, founded by T. Trent Tilton in 2012. The distillery is known for blending techniques and ingredients from the craft-brewery world with traditional spirits production: they produce small batches, single-barrel releases, and collaborate on experimental distillates with local breweries.
History
T. Trent Tilton began as a homebrewer more than two decades ago and founded San Diego Distillery in 2012. His background in brewing has led to a focus on non-traditional malts and frequent collaborations with local brewers, where the brewed mash has also been distilled. Over time, the distillery has expanded with its own experimental spirits and a sourcing program that brings aged whiskies from other regions to San Diego for further aging and finishing. The series of hand-picked Barrel Select releases and experiments like the Staved Series are the result of this development, just as a number of collaboration projects have left their mark on the range.
Raw Materials and Production
Production combines elements from the brewing and distilling worlds. San Diego Distillery deliberately works with non-standard malts and uses on-grain fermentation and distillation methods. Several of the experimental releases come from mash produced in collaboration with breweries, for example a distillate made from Pariah Brewing's Dank Drank. The distillation takes place in-house, and many releases are bottled in small batches or as single barrels. In addition, the distillery supplements its own production with an active sourcing program, where finished or near-finished whiskies are purchased, finished, and marketed under the distillery's brand.
Maturation and Barrel Types
Maturation and finishes play a central role. The distillery experiments with international wood staves in its Staved Series (e.g., Amburana, Mizunara, French Oak, and Padauk) to make use of different wood types as finishes on bourbon. Some releases have also received finishes in spirit barrels, including the use of Nuts & Beavers spirit barrels, which previously held a peanut butter stout — a finishing process that lasted over a year. Furthermore, purchased, older whiskies are brought to the valley’s aging conditions in San Diego, where pronounced day-to-night temperature fluctuations influence the maturation process.
Whiskies
The range spans broadly: experimental whiskey series created in collaboration with local breweries, a Staved Series with 9-year-old bourbons finished with various international wood staves, hand-picked Barrel Select releases, and a number of sourced, aged whiskies such as The Monk’s Straight series. There are also specialties and finished products outside the whiskey realm, but the focus is on small-batch bourbon, rye, and experimental single-barrel releases. Examples in the portfolio include PB Aged Bourbon (7 years, single barrel, 59.5% ABV) and San Diego Outcast Experimental Whiskey (4 years, 55% ABV, distilled from a brewery mash).
| Whisky | Type / Series | ABV | Age | Cask and Finish | Flavor Profile | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PB Aged Bourbon | Bourbon; Barrel Selects | 59.5 % | 7 Years | Barrel finished with Nuts & Beavers spirit barrels; finish: finished over more than a year in spirit barrels as the finish | 7-year-old single-barrel bourbon, finished in previous Nuts & Beavers spirit barrels. No additives; focus on natural peanut- and chocolate-notes. Nose: roasted peanut notes, creamy nuttiness, hints of milk chocolate; Palate: classic bourbon-spice with pronounced nut character; Finish: spicy bourbon finish | |
| San Diego Outcast Experimental Whiskey | Experimental Whiskey; Experimental Spirits | 55 % | 4 Years | An experimental distillate produced from mash from Pariah Brewing's Dank Drank. Craft Distiller T. Trent Tilton is behind the production.; Nose: chai tea and herbaceous notes | In stock (on product page) | |
| Dead Locks Experimental Whiskey | Experimental Whiskey; Experimental Spirits | |||||
| Fourpenny Experimental Whiskey | Experimental Whiskey; Experimental Spirits | |||||
| Green Flash Rayon Vert Whiskey | Experimental Whiskey; Experimental Spirits | |||||
| Me So Thorny Experimental Whiskey | Experimental Whiskey; Experimental Spirits | |||||
| Nuts and Beavers Experimental Whiskey | Experimental Whiskey; Experimental Spirits | |||||
| Brazilian Amburana Staved 9 Year Bourbon | Bourbon; Staved Series | 9 Years | Barrel finished with Brazilian Amburana staves; finish: Staved finish with Amburana | A 9-year bourbon finished with Amburana wood-staves as part of the Staved Series. | ||
| French Oak Staved 9 Year Bourbon | Bourbon; Staved Series | 9 Years | Barrel finished with French Oak staves; finish: Staved finish with French oak | 9-year bourbon with finish of French oak stave in the Staved Series. | ||
| Mizunara Staved 9 Year Bourbon | Bourbon; Staved Series | 9 Years | Barrel finished with Mizunara staves; finish: Staved finish with Mizunara | 9-year bourbon from the Staved Series with Mizunara stave. Listed as sold out on site. | Sold out | |
| African Padauk Staved 9 Year Bourbon | Bourbon; Staved Series | 9 Years | Barrel finished with African Padauk staves; finish: Staved finish with Padauk | 9-year bourbon in the Staved Series finished with African Padauk; listed as sold out. | Sold out | |
| The Monk's Straight Bourbon | Bourbon; Sourced Aged Whiskies | 5–6+ Years | Sourced whiskies that continue 5–6+ years of aging in the San Diego Valley’s temperature swings after being brought west from the Midwest. | |||
| The Monk's Straight Rye | Rye; Sourced Aged Whiskies | 5–6+ Years | Sourced rye whiskey, maturing further in the San Diego Valley climate; age range 5–6+ years. | |||
| Turkey & Tater Bourbon | Bourbon; Barrel Selects | |||||
| Turkey & Tater Rye | Rye; Barrel Selects | |||||
| 18 Year Canadian Rye Finished In Stagg Bourbon Barrels | Rye; Barrel Selects | 18 Years | Stagg Bourbon Barrels; finish: Finish in Stagg Bourbon Barrels | 18-year Canadian rye finished in Stagg Bourbon Barrels as part of the Barrel Select line. | ||
| 18 Year Canadian Rye Finished In Lost Cause Pomegranate Mead Barrels | Rye; Barrel Selects | 18 Years | Lost Cause Pomegranate Mead Barrels; finish: Finish in pomegranate mead barrels | 18-year Canadian rye finished in Lost Cause pomegranate mead barrels. | ||
| Padres Blend Yellow Edition Bourbon | Bourbon; Barrel Selects | Sold out | ||||
| Padres Blend Brown Edition Bourbon | Bourbon; Barrel Selects | Sold out |
Whiskeys: Style and Flavor Profile
Across the releases, a few common directions recur: pronounced nutty and chocolate notes along with classic bourbon-spice in certain Barrel Select releases, and tea- and herbaceous notes in several of the experimental distillates. These elements come directly from individual products, where PB Aged Bourbon is described with roasted peanut and milk chocolate notes, while collaboration distillates lean toward chai tea and herbal notes.
Visit the Distillery
The distillery has a tasting room in Spring Valley, open Thursday to Sunday with regular hours. Visitors can order flights and cocktails at the bar; menu items include 'Build Your Own' (3 x 0.5 oz), 'Bartender's Choice,' and house cocktails. The tasting room’s address and hours are provided directly, and the venue serves as the contact point for tastings and purchases of selected bottles.
The stated hours are Thursday: 5 PM – 9 PM; Friday: 5 PM – 9 PM; Saturday: 2 PM – 8 PM; Sunday: 2 PM – 8 PM.
Philosophy and Craft
San Diego Distillery works deliberately at the crossroads of craft beer and spirits. The philosophy rests on using non-traditional malts and brewing materials, experimenting with wood finishes, and combining own production with a global sourcing program to create a varied portfolio of small-batch and single-barrel releases.