Nashville has never been shy about doing things its own way, and nowhere is that spirit more alive than at Corsair Distillery, tucked into the vibrant Wedgewood-Houston arts district just south of downtown. This is not your grandfather’s whiskey tour. This is something altogether more adventurous, more creative, and frankly, more fun than most people expect when they walk through the door.
Corsair was founded in 2008 by two childhood friends, Darek Bell and Andrew Webber, who were determined to push American craft spirits into genuinely uncharted territory. They succeeded magnificently. Long before “craft distillery” became a buzzword on every cocktail menu in the country, Corsair was already winning awards for spirits made from ingredients most distillers wouldn’t dream of using — quinoa, oats, amaranth, and even hops straight from the craft beer world. Their Triple Smoke whiskey alone has earned more medals than most distilleries produce bottles in a year.
The facility itself sits in a beautifully repurposed industrial space at 601 Merritt Avenue, and it fits the neighborhood perfectly. Wedgewood-Houston — locals just call it WeHo — has evolved into one of Nashville’s most creatively charged pockets, home to art galleries, vintage shops, and some of the city’s most interesting independent restaurants. Corsair belongs here. The exposed brick, the copper pot stills gleaming under warm light, the faint sweet smell of grain in the air — it all adds up to an atmosphere that feels both working and welcoming.
The tours run most days of the week and are genuinely worth your time. Your guide walks you through the entire production process, from grain to bottle, explaining how Corsair approaches each spirit with a kind of mad-scientist enthusiasm that is infectious. You will learn why their approach to malting and smoking sets their whiskeys apart, and you will likely leave with a new vocabulary for talking about spirits. The tour wraps up with a tasting flight, and this is where things really get interesting. Expect to try three to five spirits, which might include their Ryemageddon, a bold rye-malt hybrid, or one of their rotating experimental expressions that simply are not available anywhere else.
If you are not in the mood for a full tour, the tasting room is open on its own, and the staff behind the bar genuinely love talking about what they make. Pull up a stool, order a cocktail built around their flagship American Whiskey, and watch the afternoon light come through the high windows. It is a remarkably easy place to lose an hour.
Corsair also operates a second Nashville location at Marathon Village on Clinton Avenue, another beautifully restored industrial space worth a visit, but the WeHo distillery has the working production floor and the fuller tour experience, so start there.
Tickets for the tour run around fifteen dollars per person and include the tasting, which is genuinely good value in a city where craft cocktail experiences can feel overpriced. Check their website for current tour times before you go, as they vary by day and season. Parking is easy along the surrounding streets, and the neighborhood is walkable enough that you can make a proper afternoon of it — distillery first, gallery next, dinner somewhere nearby to close out the evening.
Nashville is always going to be about the music, and rightfully so. But the city’s food and drink culture has quietly become just as worthy of attention. Corsair Distillery is one of the best arguments for that case, and visiting feels less like a tourist stop and more like getting a genuine look at what makes this city so endlessly inventive.
