10th Street Distillery

Brief overview of the distillery

10th Street Distillery in San Jose produces American single malts and blends with a clear engineering mindset: precision in distillation combined with the courage to experiment with finishes. The distillery makes both peated and unpeated malts, uses copper pot stills and Sierra snowmelt water, and offers a wide range of finish effects from STR barrels to wine, port, rum, and stout finishes. The result is a portfolio ranging from accessible core expressions to hand-selected, high-ABV specials.

History

From engineering spirit to a San Jose distillery

10th Street Distillery describes itself as a place where engineering precision meets whisky tradition. The team writes that they learned 'the old ways' of making single malt from established professionals but consciously chose to blend tradition and innovation. The distillery is located in San Jose and has built a portfolio of both classic single malts and experimental finish effects, including collaborations on cask swaps with local breweries as well as use of local and imported raw materials. Over time, the range has expanded with STR warehouses, wine- and port-finish expressions, as well as special and single-cask releases, and the products have won a number of international competition medals.

Sourcing and collaborations

The distillery combines its own distillation with sourced light whiskies in some blends; for example, the distillery used whiskies from the old Seagram’s plant in Lawrenceburg, Indiana in their 'California Coast Blend'. At the same time, they work with local partners such as breweries to reuse stout finishes for finish releases.

Raw materials and production

The raw material forms the foundation: the distillery uses both imported peated barley and American 2-row/non-peated malt, along with mineral-rich water from Sierra snowmelt. Distillation takes place in copper pot stills with double distillation, and for certain releases they take 'unique cuts' to shape the spirit’s character. STR cask treatment clearly plays a role in the aging strategy, and some releases are bottled without chill filtration to preserve complexity. There are also direct experiments with finishes in recently emptied rum casks and with mutual use of casks in collaboration with local breweries. The combination of traditional pot-still craftsmanship and an engineering approach to process optimization characterizes the production.

Maturation and cask types

The base maturation often takes place in first-fill bourbon barrels of charred American oak, but the distillery is active with after-maturation and finish: STR casks are used both as a primary medium and as part of complex triple-cask processes, while local Pinot Noir finishes, port finishes, Jamaican rum finishes, and stout finishes provide specific finish expressions. Many bottles are hand-selected finishes, and several releases are single-cask or limited releases where the finish type is central to the final expression.

Whiskies

The portfolio comprises clearly distinct lines: core expressions like Peated Single Malt, STR Unpeated, and Distiller’s Cut; a California-inspired blend (California Coast Blend); as well as a range of finish releases and single-cask bottles (wine-, port-, rum-, and stout-finish). There are both accessible, lower-ABV core bottles for everyday enjoyment and higher-ABV, limited releases for collectors and enthusiasts. The products show a balance between smoky expressions, STR malt character, and experimental cask influences.

Whisky	Type / Series	Alcohol	Cask and Style	Flavor Profile	Status
Peated Single Malt	Single Malt	46 %	First-fill bourbon barrels; smoked/dried	Inspired by classic methods, made with peated malt from Scotland, mineral-rich Sierra snowmelt water, and aged in first-fill bourbon barrels. Nose: Citrus, with a peat smoke essence; Palate: Creamy full flavors of vanilla and dark red apple peels, turning into rounded peat flavors; Finish: Full-bodied, buttery, with a lingering peaty finish	Current; Core range
STR Unpeated Single Malt	Single Malt	46 %	STR (Shaved-Toasted-Recharred) casks	All-American version double-distilled in copper pot stills, aged in STR-finish casks and bottled without chill-filtration. Nose: Lightly spicy with overtones of sweet caramel and butterscotch; Palate: Complex cherry-like sweetness with notes of vanilla bean, nutmeg, and clove; Finish: Smooth and round, filled with decadent flavors of candied fruits	Current; Core range
Distiller's Cut Peated Single Malt	Single Malt	44 %	First-fill bourbon barrels; smoked/dried	A bolder, smoky single malt with imported peated malt, double-distillation in copper pot stills and aging in bourbon barrels. Nose: Sour nose with bright citrus, vanilla, and peat; heavy mesquite smoke; Palate: Sweet high notes of blackberry, brown sugar, honey, and molasses; bran cereal, burnt chocolate; Finish: Smooth and lingering on the sides and back of the tongue	Current; Core range
Wine Cask Finish Distillers Cut Peated Single Malt	Single Malt (Finished); Distiller's Cut (Wine Finish)	59.7 %	Pinot Noir casks (toasted French oak); finish: Wine finish on Distiller's Cut; smoked/dried	Distiller's Cut, aged in local Pinot Noir casks to add oaky wine fruit tones to the smoky base. Nose: Honeysuckle, bright red fruits, smoked nectarine; Palate: Grilled peach, poached berries, medium tannins, bright smoke; Finish: Tannins, piquant acidity, long lingering peat	Limited
California Coast Blend	Blend	42 %	First-fill bourbon barrels; blended with pot-still light whiskies	A blended expression designed as an interpretation of California's diversity: two own single malts combined with pot-still light whiskies from Lawrenceburg. Nose: Stewed stone fruits, vanilla custard, coconut cream, modeling clay, sea air, salinity; Palate: Panna cotta, light campfire embers, dandelions, heathered honey; Finish: Glazed donuts, lime Altoid sours, lingering silky mouthfeel	Current; Core range
Distillers Cut Port Cask Finish Peated Single Malt	Single Malt (Finished); Distiller's Cut (Port Finish)	56.1 %	Port cask (toasted French oak) finish after first-fill bourbon; finish: Port finish on hand-selected bourbon barrel; smoked/dried	Hand-selected bourbon barrel followed by port cask finish; combines Distiller’s Cut profile with port’s fruit and color. Finish: Deep burgundy color with smoked cherries (described as flavor notes)	Limited
Port Cask Finish Peated Single Malt	Single Malt (Finished)	58.2 %	First-fill bourbon barrels, finished in California port casks; finish: Port finish; smoked/dried	Limited edition port-finished peated single malt, aged in port casks for extra color and fruit character. Nose: Peat layered over fresh fruit and oak; Palate: Toasted barley, stone fruits, berries, and honey; Finish: Smooth finish evolves with creamy texture, subtle tannins, refreshing lift, and a peppery warmth	Limited
Stout Cask Finish Peated Single Malt #194	Single Malt (Finished)	56.4 %	Stout cask (returned from a brewery collaboration); finish: Stout-finish to add cocoa, coffee, and dark fruit notes; smoked/dried	Peated single malt aged in stout barrels; combines smoke with dark, brew-inspired flavor layers. Nose: Cigar smoke, cocoa powder, flamed orange; Palate: Candied cherries, grilled plum, toasted oak, sweetgrass; Finish: Toasted coconut, dark chocolate, roast coffee, and black raspberry	Limited
Triple Cask American (Dragon)	Single Malt (Finished)	54.8 %	STR → Wine → Port (triple finish); finish: Aged in STR cask, followed by wine and port finishes	Pot-still distilled, non-chill filtered single malt released first in 2024; a triple-cask edition that won Best in Show at Whiskies of the World 2024. Nose: Rich and aromatic with dried fruit, caramel, and toasted oak; hints of spice, dark chocolate, citrus; Palate: Full-bodied with toffee, dark chocolate, roasted nuts, spice, charred wood and slight smokiness; Finish: Lingering finish with balanced sweet and spicy notes	Current
Rum Cask Finish Single Malt Cask #471	Single Malt (Finished)	57 %	Jamaican rum casks (freshly dumped); finish: Rum finish immediately after the dumps to capture fresh rum character in the finish.	Bottled from cask where STR was filled into rum casks on the same day as the dumps to capture fresh rum character in the finish. Nose: Tropical fruits, mango, toasted coconut, grilled plantains, strawberry, honey, melon, buttermilk biscuits; Palate: Hard strawberry candy, dried coconut, banana pudding, white pepper and allspice; Finish: Green papaya, ginger, and root beer notes	Limited
Rum Cask Finish Peated Single Malt #418	Single Malt (Finished)	59.1 %	Rum casks (fresh rum barrels); finish: Rum-cask finish on peated single malt; smoked/dried	Peated single malt finished in rum casks to create a combination of smoke and sweetness from the rum cask. Nose: Allspice, cherry wood smoke, dried apple; Palate: Smoked plantain, pimento wood, paprika, honey, lemongrass; Finish: Aged molasses, long lasting smoke, tobacco	Limited
Stout Cask Finish STR Single Malt	Single Malt (Finished)	57.5 %	Stout cask (returned from Strike Brewery); finish: STR bottled after stout finish returned from local brewery	STR version finished in stout barrels that were returned from Strike Brewery. Nose: Maple syrup and molasses; Palate: Dark chocolate and malt with a hint of orange; Finish: Lovely burnt caramel finish	Limited
Wine Cask Finish Peated Single Malt Cask #148	Single Malt (Finished)	56.2 %	First-fill bourbon then local Pinot Noir cask (toasted French oak); finish: Wine-cask finish on peated malt; smoked/dried	A renowned wine-finish peated single malt, crowned Best in Show at the New York World Spirits Competition 2021 and praised by Jim Murray among others. Nose: Strawberry jam on white bread by the morning campfire, tangerine, cherries, real vanilla, sea air; Palate: Smoked fruit, almonds and walnuts, powdered sugar, baking spices, burnt match; Finish: Tannic, sour candies, white pepper, mint, lingering peat	Limited

The whiskies’ style and flavor profile

Generally, the descriptions point to three main directions: a clear smoke/peat axis (mesquite, heavy peat, and tobacco-like notes in the peated releases), a fruity and vinous axis (stone fruits, cherries, berries, and citrus especially in wine- and port-finish as well as in the blends), and a sweet/oak-spice axis (vanilla, caramel, butterscotch, toffee, and spices such as nutmeg and clove from bourbon and STR aging). Combinations of these elements form many of the distillery’s signature expressions.

Visit the distillery

The distillery has a tasting room at 442 N. 4th Street in San Jose with regular weekend hours: Friday 17–22, Saturday 15–18, and Sunday 15–20. Tastings, private experiences, and tours can be booked; gift cards are offered digitally for whisky flights, private cocktail & whisky tastings, and distillery tours & private tastings. Distillery pickup is available with purchase, and booking is through the distillery’s booking system.

The stated opening hours are Fri: 17:00–22:00 | Sat: 15:00–18:00 | Sun: 15:00–20:00.

Philosophy and craftsmanship

10th Street articulates a clear value: an engineering belief that processes can be improved. They combine learning from traditional single malt methods with a willingness to push the boundaries of American whisky production. Precision, craftsmanship, and a spirit of experimentation are highlighted principles in their work.

Awards and recognitions

Best in Show (2024, Winner, Triple Cask American (Dragon))
97 Points / 4th Finest Whisky in the World (2025, 97 points, Port Cask Finish Peated Single Malt)
Best in Show (2021, Best in Show, Wine Cask Finish Peated Single Malt Cask #148)