The ACSA Guide to Starting and Operating a Distillery E-Book

Description

The ACSA Guide to Starting and Operating a Distillery E-Book: NEW, EXPANDED EDITION

The American Craft Spirits Association (ACSA) presents an exclusive e-book, “The ACSA Guide to Starting and Operating a Distillery.” The peer-reviewed guide is a comprehensive compendium of expert insights detailing all of the tools and techniques that new distilleries need to get their businesses up and running and help ensure a prosperous future. In addition to serving as a textbook for craft spirits producers in their first one to three years in operation, it’s an invaluable resource for onboarding new members of your team, as well as a reference for existing staff to gain a more holistic view of how a distillery operates. The New, Expanded Edition, published in November 2025, includes the following new chapters: 

• Packaging: Design Trends
• The New Age of Spirits Sales
• Launching Ready-to-Drink Spirit-Based Canned Cocktails
• A fully revised and updated Digital Marketing Essentials section.

Chapters include: 

1. Funding a Startup Distillery
2. Components of a Business Plan
3. Architecture
4. Deciding on your Product Mix
5. Working with the TTB
6. State Regulator Considerations
7. Fundamentals of Distillation
8. Equipment Selection
9. Off-Flavors in Spirits Production
10. Aging Spirits
11. Launching Ready-to-Drink, Spirit-Based Canned Cocktails*
12. Key Considerations for Self-Distribution
13. Anatomy of a Distribution Agreement
14. The New Age of Spirits Sales* 
15. Packaging Fundamentals
16. Packaging Design Trends*
17. Branding Basics
18. The Art of Marketing
19. Naming Your Distillery
20. Intro to Public Relations
21. Digital Marketing Essentials Revisted**
22. Social Media Cheat Sheet
23. Videos and Your Distillery
24. Tasting Rooms: Operational Basics
25. Minding the Merchandise

* New Chapter for 2025 Edition
**Updated and Revised Chapter for 2025 Edition

Price

The regular price for the e-book is $209 for ACSA members and $369 for non-members. Purchasers will receive access to a ZIP file with a PDF and EPUB file of the e-book that is compatible with Amazon Kindle and Apple Books. Please note, if you are an ACSA member, you will need to be logged in to our site to see member pricing.

Gifting Instructions

If you would like to order gift copies of the book, select the number of copies you would like to order. Those wishing to buy the guide for multiple readers can take advantage of a 20% discount on purchases of three or more copies. In the cart at checkout, under additional information, please include the name(s) and email address(es) of the recipients.

Contributing authors include Isaac Arthur, Benjamin Carr, Jesse Den Herder, Glass Packaging Institute, Mitchell Hall, John Holl, Jake Holshue, Johnny Jeffery, Sydney Jones, Christian Kahle, Jeff Kanof, Ryan Malkin, Susan Mooney, Jon O’Connor, Teri Quimby, Jeff Quint, Robin Robinson, Mark Shilling, Gary Spedding, Mark A. Vierthaler and Gary K. Yurt. ACSA president Gina Holman wrote the foreword and CRAFT SPIRITS magazine editor in chief Jeff Cioletti and senior editor Jon Page edited the guide.