A Savannah distillery tour often includes tastings in a relaxed setting, where you can sample small pours of bourbon, gin, rum, or craft cocktails. Some Savannah distillery tours also include chances to talk directly with the makers, giving you insight into their inspiration and the traditions they are keeping alive.
What Makes Savannah’s Distillery Scene Worth Exploring?
Savannah is a city that enjoys good company, good food, and a well-made drink, and its distilleries capture that feeling. Visiting a Savannah distillery might take you into a modern space filled with copper stills or a cozy tasting room where cocktails are served alongside Southern bites.
How Did Savannah Distillery Culture Begin and Grow?
The history of Savannah distillery culture reaches back more than a century. Georgia passed statewide prohibition in 1908, long before the rest of the nation, and Savannah quickly became known for resisting it. With access to waterways and the busy port, the city became a hub for rumrunning and bootlegging, which earned it the nickname “the Bootleg Spigot of the South.” When Prohibition ended, much of Savannah’s drinking culture stayed connected to neighborhood bars and family recipes passed down through generations. The city’s recent revival of craft distilling has turned that hidden history into something visitors can experience firsthand.
Today, tours and tastings let guests sample small-batch spirits, learn how they’re made, and hear stories that connect each bottle to the city’s long and colorful past. Many locals see it as a way of honoring tradition while shaping a new chapter in Savannah’s story.
What Are the Must-Visit Savannah Distilleries?
The distillery scene in Savannah continues to grow, shaped by history, craft, and a strong sense of place. Each location offers its own atmosphere, and together they show how deeply connected the city is to the culture of spirits. Visiting a Savannah distillery gives travelers a chance to experience flavor, tradition, and hospitality in a way that feels authentic to the city.
Old Savannah Distillery
This newly opened space transforms the spirit of Savannah into a classic Southern restaurant and bar destination. While not a production facility, the space serves as an immersive tribute to the craft, featuring a spirits emporium and a full-scale restaurant. By bringing history and hospitality under one roof, Old Savannah Distillery® is set to be one of the city’s most unique cultural and dining openings.
Savannah Distilling
Savannah Distilling is Georgia’s first post-Prohibition bourbon distillery. The focus is on small-batch production that emphasizes Southern ingredients and careful aging. Tours and tastings are in the works to highlight how water, grain, and craft combine to create bourbon with a flavor tied to Savannah’s history. Bourbon enthusiasts will appreciate how this distillery aims to carry tradition forward while shaping a new chapter in the city’s spirits culture.
Burnt Church Distillery
Burnt Church Distillery in Bluffton, SC, about 45 minutes outside Savannah, has earned a reputation for craft cocktails and attentive hospitality. The drinks often feature house-made mixers and creative recipes, and the staff makes the experience personal by sharing the stories behind what guests are sipping. The building itself has an inviting layout with stylish design, giving groups and individuals a comfortable place to gather and enjoy their time.
Two Tides Brewing Co.
Two Tides Brewing Co. brings energy to Savannah’s craft beverage scene. The menu changes frequently and showcases beers that explore inventive flavor combinations. Visitors enjoy the colorful setting and the popular rooftop, which offers a relaxed space to take in the city. The brewery adds variety to the wider Savannah brewery experience.
The Georgia Tasting Room
Located in the vibrant heart of City Market, The Georgia Tasting Room offers a lively, approachable way to sample the flavors of the South. Specializing in Georgia-grown wines, local craft beers, and their famous wine slushies, this spot is designed for casual exploration rather than formal ceremony. It’s the perfect place to discover a new favorite peach wine or pick up a unique local bottle to remember your Savannah getaway.
Savannah Bee Company
Savannah Bee Company introduces guests to mead, or honey wine, an ancient drink with deep roots in agriculture and tradition. Tastings include several varieties, each shaped by local honey. In addition to drinks, the shop features honey-based products that showcase how versatile the ingredient can be. The mix of mead, honey, and education makes this stop especially memorable within the Savannah distillery experience.
What Types of Savannah Distillery Tours Can You Try?
A visit to a Savannah distillery can feel different depending on the style of tour you choose, and many people end up enjoying more than one. Tasting and cocktail experiences shift the focus to flavor and creativity. Visitors sample bourbons, gins, rums, or seasonal specialties while bartenders share recipes designed to highlight each spirit. You might learn how to stir a classic cocktail, shake something new, or understand why certain ingredients pair so well together. These sessions are usually casual, and questions are always welcome.
At a Savannah distillery, the staff takes pride in making the tasting room feel inviting, often offering pairing notes with snacks or small bites.
Why Do Savannah Distilleries Add So Much to the City Experience?
Visiting a Savannah distillery adds more than a drink to your trip because each stop ties into the city’s culture and past. Meeting the people who keep the craft alive helps you understand the pride that goes into every barrel and bottle. The tours are about flavor, but they are also about the stories of families, entrepreneurs, and communities that make Savannah what it is today. Exploring a Savannah distillery is a way to learn while you sip, and the relaxed atmosphere makes it easy to soak it all in.
Old Town Trolley Tours® is a popular way to move between stops. The hop-on, hop-off service keeps the day flexible, and the friendly and knowledgeable guides share live narration about Savannah’s history as you ride. A trolley stop near a Savannah distillery means you can sample without worrying about parking while also enjoying a scenic ride through squares and landmarks.
The American Prohibition Museum® pairs especially well with a distillery tour. Its exhibits and recreated speakeasy highlight how the city adapted when alcohol was banned, showing how locals kept traditions alive even during restrictive years. Costumed docents and interactive displays make it easy to imagine yourself in the 1920s. When you combine this with a modern Savannah distillery visit, you get both sides of the story: the challenges of the past and the creativity of today. It creates an experience that you’ll never forget, giving a deeper connection to Savannah itself.
FAQs
The legal drinking age across the United States, including Savannah, is 21. Every Savannah distillery checks IDs before allowing visitors to join tastings or purchase spirits. Adults can enjoy the full experience of sampling cocktails or spirits, while younger guests are sometimes welcome to join for the educational parts of the tour. This means families can still explore the history of Savannah’s ties to distilling without alcohol involved. At some locations, nonalcoholic options or mocktails may be available, which allows everyone to feel included. Checking with the specific Savannah distillery before you visit is the best way to know what’s offered for underage guests.
Some Savannah distillery tours are designed to be family-friendly, especially those that highlight the cultural and historical role of spirits in the city. At these tours, you’ll often find more emphasis on storytelling and heritage than on cocktails. Others are adults-only, with the focus centered on tastings and mixology classes. Families planning to visit should check ahead and choose tours that lean toward history and production rather than bar service. A Savannah distillery tour that covers topics like Prohibition, rumrunning, and old recipes can be engaging for teens and older kids who enjoy history, even if they aren’t sampling. The American Prohibition Museum is another spot that often pairs well with a distillery visit, adding context to how spirits shaped local culture.
Not every Savannah distillery provides a full production walk, but most welcome visitors with tastings or cocktail flights. Smaller distilleries sometimes keep it simple with casual tastings at the bar or a short talk with staff. Both styles give you the chance to ask questions and learn about the creativity behind each recipe. Because Savannah is a popular destination, it’s smart to check availability in advance. Some tours sell out quickly during weekends, holidays, or special events, so booking ahead ensures you don’t miss out on a favorite Savannah distillery experience.
Many travelers combine a stop at a Savannah distillery with Old Town Trolley Tours. The hop-on, hop-off service makes it easy to move between neighborhoods without worrying about parking, and the friendly and knowledgeable guides add rich live narration about the city’s history along the way. For a deeper look at Savannah’s spirited past, the American Prohibition Museum is a must, with costumed interpreters and vintage displays that show how the city navigated the dry years. Adding a riverfront dinner, a ghost tour, or even a visit to one of Savannah’s rooftop bars rounds out the day. Pairing a Savannah distillery with these experiences gives you a full picture of the city’s past and present, blending history, culture, and flavor into a memorable outing.
