Hands holding freshly harvested grapes

FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED IN THE HEART OF SONOMA WINE COUNTRY

California Values

Our family is a product of the beautiful Northern Californian environment we call home. We’ve grown up alongside the farm-to-table movement pioneered in the San Francisco Bay area, surrounded by natural abundance and inspiring businesses. That approach to food and community has been integral to our vision and the distillery we’ve built together.

Hanson family members in vineyard holding buckets of grapes

How it all began

Hanson began as an idea in 2012, and took two years of research and development to become the product it is today. We developed 155 different batches – which meant different grape varietals, distillation techniques, and filtration methods – to create our final blend, batch 123. In 2013 we undertook our first official grape harvest, and designed our very first label. That same year we presented bottles with masking tape labels at the Spirits International Prestige Awards and the Vodka Masters in London – we ended up winning “Best in Show” and a Platinum Award at the former, and two golds and two silvers at the latter.
2014 was a big year for us, bookended by two huge distribution milestones: our first home-state California distribution partner to start the year, and our first out-of-state partner by December. In between, we launched our first website, won more awards, drafted in family and friends to help pick grapes at our second harvest, and held our official brand launch at the historic Tosca Restaurant, San Francisco. We even supplied Vanity Fair’s prestigious New Establishment Summit Cocktail Party at the Ferry Building!
Hot on the heels of our first out-of-state distributor came our first out-of-country distributor in Hong Kong! We continued building on our success, winning more awards throughout 2015 and 2016, as well as physically building our Sonoma Tasting Room after lending our support to the passing of Assembly Bill 1233, allowing distillers to sell out of their tasting rooms.
The year of our third grape harvest, 2015, is also when we introduced our first boysenberry seasonal release. This was followed by the launch of our hottest infusion yet – Hanson Habanero Vodka – in 2016, and was joined by our Espresso Infused Vodka as a seasonal release in 2017, following its initial launch in 2014.
2018 was huge for us, as we threw open the doors of our Sonoma Tasting Room! We began welcoming visitors to our distillery home just months before our sixth grape harvest, then opened our second venue, the Hanson Sausalito Tasting Room, in early 2019.
When Covid struck, we rallied together our community to make the most of our resources. We began by making Hand Sanitizer for hospitals and first responders. Virtual cocktail courses and to-go pre-batched cocktails kept us in touch with Hanson fans. Once we could have visitors on the property again, we opened our ‘Tasting Garden by the Pond’. DIY cocktail kits have proved so popular they’re still available today!
New Covid legislation required us to serve a bonafide meal with our tastings. With the installation of a Mugnaini Italian brick wood-fired oven and growing relationships with local suppliers in Sonoma and wider California, we began our wood-fired food program on the weekends offering pizzas and Hog Island oysters during tastings. Our pizza program has proved so popular that it’s a favorite “thing to do” in Sonoma on the weekends. Building on the success of our food program, we officially launched the Hanson event program.
Man fixing pot and column still
Two people harvesting grapes
Hanson family in dinner suits in front of building
Hands holding grapes
Hanson Gallery building in Sausilito
Friends toasting with cocktails
Chef serving platter of food for guests drinking hanson vodka

Meet the
Hanson Family

portrait of scott hanson
portrait of judy hanson
portrait of alanna hanson
Portrait of brandon hanson
portrait of darren hanson
portrait of chris hanson

Scott Hanson

CEO

Our dad. Celebrated artist, founder of internationally-recognized Hanson Galleries, and Hollywood film producer for Paramount. In the last 40 years, Scott opened Hanson Galleries from LA to NYC, Hawaii, Europe, and beyond. Everything changed when Scott’s grown children proposed an idea he couldn’t refuse: a family-owned and operated distillery in the heart of Sonoma Valley. Inspired by his work on the prohibition-era film Lawless (2012), Scott embraced his sons’ foray into premium spirits. Once the kids had developed their concept, Mom and Dad joined them in building the Hanson brand.

Judy Hanson

Co Owner & Tasting Room Co-Ordinator

Meet our mom, Judy. Alongside our Dad, Scott, Judy successfully ran an international roster of fine art galleries for over four decades. When we decided to turn our hands to distilling, mom and dad joined us and backed our joint vision. They raised our family in Marin County, where they still live today, and retained the Hanson Art Gallery in Sausalito, which houses the Hanson of Sonoma Tasting Room under Judy’s expert stewardship.

Alanna Hanson

Co Owner & Marketing Director

Once we designed our product and label, we needed a website and marketing presence. Alanna, equipped with a bachelor’s from USC Cinematic Arts in Film Production, and a job at Sony Pictures, rose to the task. Innovative by nature, Alanna crafted our first site in-house and is the brains behind many of our ideas. Community winemaker series, local festivals and organizations, and our speaker series — you name it. Everything Alanna does champions our community by empowering creatives, supporting women in the industry, and celebrating regional organic producers.

Brandon Hanson

Co Owner & Master Blender

After high school, Brandon moved to LA to chase his acting dreams. Between jobs, he found a passion for bartending and started working at various bars in the city. Seeing an opportunity for an American craft vodka, he teamed up with his brother Chris and co-founded our distillery. Their dream was to craft 100% organic, small-batch, quality spirits from California grapes. Brandon, now our Master Blender, works closely with local farmers to source ingredients for our flavored infusions and seasonal. He manages our production and works with wholesale distributors across all 50 states.

Darren Hanson

Co Owner & Head of Production

After studying audio computer engineering at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, CA, Darren joined the family distillery in 2013 to head up and oversee production. Initially, this included procuring the distillation equipment, including our unique and superior hybrid copper pot stills and column stills! As the engineer of the group, Darren manages all aspects of spirit production, blending, and bottling. He provides the essential behind-the-scenes expertise that keeps our distillery humming.

Chris Hanson

Co Owner & Master Distiller

While studying at Regent’s University London, Chris witnessed a surge in the craft brewery movement and it sparked an idea. Consulting with his brother, Brandon, the pair decided to apply that same ethos of using high-quality, locally-sourced ingredients to craft exceptional spirits. Looking to their idyllic home state, they soon decided to craft an organic vodka with Sonoma County’s most abundant local resource – grapes. Today, Chris is the Master Distiller and Winemaker at Hanson of Sonoma Distillery, and oversees the grape harvest, processing, and blending. In 2021, he was named “Distiller of the Year” by North Bay Business Times.

Meet the
Hanson Family

Brandon Hanson
Co-Owner & Master Blender

After high school, Brandon moved to LA to chase his acting dreams. Between jobs, he found a passion for bartending and started working at various bars in the city. Seeing an opportunity for an American craft vodka, he teamed up with his brother Chris and co-founded our distillery. Their dream was to craft 100% organic, small-batch, quality spirits from California grapes. Brandon, now our Master Blender, works closely with local farmers to source ingredients for our flavored infusions and seasonal. He manages our production and works with wholesale distributors across all 50 states.

Alanna Hanson
Co-Owner & Marketing Director

Once we designed our product and label, we needed a website and marketing presence. Alanna, equipped with a bachelor’s from USC Cinematic Arts in Film Production, and a job at Sony Pictures, rose to the task. Innovative by nature, Alanna crafted our first site in-house and is the brains behind many of our ideas. Community winemaker series, local festivals and organizations, and our speaker series — you name it. Everything Alanna does champions our community by empowering creatives, supporting women in the industry, and celebrating regional organic producers.

Chris Hanson
Co-Owner & Master Distiller

While studying at Regent’s University London, Chris witnessed a surge in the craft brewery movement and it sparked an idea. Consulting with his brother, Brandon, the pair decided to apply that same ethos of using high-quality, locally-sourced ingredients to craft exceptional spirits. Looking to their idyllic home state, they soon decided to craft an organic vodka with Sonoma County’s most abundant local resource – grapes. Today, Chris is the Master Distiller and Winemaker at Hanson of Sonoma Distillery, and oversees the grape harvest, processing, and blending. In 2021, he was named “Distiller of the Year” by North Bay Business Times.

Darren Hanson
Co-Owner & Head of Production

After studying audio computer engineering at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, CA, Darren joined the family distillery in 2013 to head up and oversee production. Initially, this included procuring the distillation equipment, including our unique and superior hybrid copper pot stills and column stills! As the engineer of the group, Darren manages all aspects of spirit production, blending, and bottling. He provides the essential behind-the-scenes expertise that keeps our distillery humming.

Judy Hanson
Co-Owner & Tasting Room Co-ordinator

Meet our mom, Judy. Alongside our Dad, Scott, Judy successfully ran an international roster of fine art galleries for over four decades. When we decided to turn our hands to distilling, mom and dad joined us and backed our joint vision. They raised our family in Marin County, where they still live today, and retained the Hanson Art Gallery in Sausalito, which houses the Hanson of Sonoma Tasting Room under Judy’s expert stewardship.

Scott Hanson
CEO

Our dad. Celebrated artist, founder of internationally-recognized Hanson Galleries, and Hollywood film producer for Paramount. In the last 40 years, Scott opened Hanson Galleries from LA to NYC, Hawaii, Europe, and beyond. Everything changed when Scott’s grown children proposed an idea he couldn’t refuse: a family-owned and operated distillery in the heart of Sonoma Valley. Inspired by his work on the prohibition-era film Lawless (2012), Scott embraced his sons’ foray into premium spirits. Once the kids had developed their concept, Mom and Dad joined them in building the Hanson brand.

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Landscape shot of pond side

Hanson’s is rife with new ideas and a trailblazing kind of innovation, but the thrust of it all is more or less a throwback to when things were done simply, naturally and with integrity.

- Edible Magazine

Our brand
collaborators

Ceja family standing in front of vineyard

Ceja Family Vineards

To make organic vodka from grapes, you first have to make wine. We turned to our neighbors and fellow family-owned business, Ceja Vineyards, for their expert help. Ceja’s wine-making operation dates back three generations, and their wisdom and generosity has helped us from day one. 

Master winemaker Armando Ceja grew up learning from his parents, who worked the vineyards with Robert Mondavi and tended the famous ‘To Kalon’ Vineyard in Napa Valley. Now he’s passing that knowledge on to his third-generation winemaker daughters, Belen and Ellie, and our family

Toby Abou-ganim

After a year and a half trialing 155 different batches of vodka, we sought the expert opinion of Tony Abou-Ganim – considered one of the godfathers of mixology – and sent him some of our favorite samples to test.

Tony loved what we were doing. In June 2013, he sent the following note: “Just finished a second evaluation of #123 and wanted to share my tasting notes. Also, wanted to share with you that I have had several people, industry professionals and consumers, taste your latest samples blind and they all picked Batch #123”.

Batch #123 is now better known as our Original Vodka formula, a specific blend or grapes, distillation and filtering that forms the base of everything we craft at Hanson of Sonoma Distillery!

Portrait of Toby Abou-Ganim lighting flaming cocktail on fire
Photo of farming partners and Brandon Hanson standing in the countryside

Our farming community

We’re blessed and grateful for the incredible farming community surrounding us. Nestled on the border of Sonoma County and Napa County, Hanson of Sonoma distillery sits at the heart of the Carneros Appellation renowned for its commitment to the very best in natural, sustainable and transparent agricultural practices.

Without our farming partners – who supply everything from the freshest cucumbers to the hottest habanero chilies – our certified 100% organic, non-GMO, grape-based vodka would not be possible!

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