Scenic Desert Wine Distillery Brewery Route 66 Tour

Kingman’s best surprise may be its desert drink scene. On this five-to-six-hour Route 66 outing, you can move from a family vineyard to Arizona rum, craft beer, and a home-style lunch without having to drive between stops. The Route 66 Museum and Powerhouse Visitor Center add useful context, so the day is not just about tasting.

I like the small-group format, capped at 13 people, and I like the easygoing guides. Mike, Sue, Brandon, and Bob have all led tours, with particular praise for local stories, desert plants, and the ability to let each stop breathe. The main consideration is distance: this is a full half-day, and pickup is not available from Las Vegas despite some older accounts describing Las Vegas departures.

Key points to know before booking

• Route 66 and wine in one day: Begin with Kingman’s road history, then head to a six-acre vineyard with mountain views.
• Up to seven wine tastings: Little Old Wine Drinkers Winery offers a broad mix, including Pinot Grigio, Tempranillo, rosé, red blends, and the playful Pink Bikini.
• Arizona rum with serious credentials: Desert Diamond Distillery makes and bottles its spirits on-site, including award-winning aged rum.
• Lunch is included: The meal may be served at Sirens Cafe or another selected location, depending on the day.
• Craft beer finishes the route: Black Bridge Brewery has more than 20 beers on tap, plus ginger beer and cold-brew coffee.
• Plan for a flexible itinerary: The distillery is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and the brewery may replace it when it cannot operate.

Why this Kingman tour works

This is not a polished resort excursion. It is a look at the working side of Kingman, with family businesses, a small downtown brewery, a local cafe, and a vineyard growing grapes in a dry part of Arizona.

That matters because the best moments are likely to come from the people running these places. At Little Old Wine Drinkers Winery, the owners explain their earth to bottle process with plenty of personality. At Black Bridge Brewery, the setting feels local rather than manufactured, with a backyard patio and a redwood stage used for live music on many weekends.

The tour costs $159 per person, including transportation, bottled water, lunch, tasting fees, and taxes. For a private car, several tastings, a museum visit, and a meal, that is a reasonable package. You are paying for convenience as much as alcohol. Someone else handles the driving, the route, and the timing.

The value is weaker if you are mainly seeking a large formal wine estate or generous pours. One past participant found the first winery less impressive than the brewery and other stops, while another felt the wine samples were small. Tasting portions are set by each business, not by the tour company, so go for variety and local character rather than a full afternoon of drinking.

Starting with Route 66 at the Powerhouse

The day begins around 8:00 a.m., with pickup arranged in Kingman. You should provide your pickup point when booking and expect confirmation one or two days before departure.

The Route 66 Museum and Powerhouse Visitor Center give the day a good first chapter. Kingman is closely tied to the famous highway, and the museum helps explain how the road shaped the town and the wider desert corridor. It is also a practical way to understand why this route is about more than wine.

The museum visit has been singled out as one of the worthwhile parts of the day. That makes sense. Without it, the winery, distillery, and brewery would feel like separate stops. With it, you can see them as part of a town built around movement, roadside trade, rail connections, and Route 66 culture.

Do not expect a long museum tour with hours of exhibits. The full experience lasts about five to six hours, so this is one piece of a busy day. Still, it gives you useful bearings before the tasting begins.

Little Old Wine Drinkers Winery and Arizona’s dry vineyards

The first winery stop is Little Old Wine Drinkers Winery, located on six acres along Winery Row just off historic Route 66. More than 4,000 vines grow here, with mountain views behind the outdoor seating area.

The setting is a pleasant surprise. You are looking at green grapevines in a dry desert region, not a broad European vineyard. The contrast is part of the appeal, and the outdoor area gives you a place to slow down after the drive.

The winery presents itself as a family operation, and the owners are part of the experience. Their stories and informal style create a friendly visit rather than a technical tasting lecture. If you enjoy meeting the people behind a bottle, this may be one of the strongest stops.

Expect wines such as Pinot Grigio, Tempranillo, rosé of Zinfandel, and red blends. The signature Pink Bikini is a grape and strawberry blend. It will appeal to you if you like fruit-forward wine, though serious dry-wine drinkers may prefer the Tempranillo or red blends.

The listed visit lasts about 45 minutes. That is enough time for several samples and a look at the setting, but not enough for a lengthy vineyard tour or detailed winemaking class. The winery is open daily from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.

This stop has a clear strength and a possible weakness. The strength is personality, scenery, and a sense of place. The weakness is that your enjoyment may depend on how much you like casual, family-run tasting rooms. If you want sleek architecture and formal service, this is not that kind of winery.

Desert Diamond Distillery and award-winning Arizona rum

At Desert Diamond Distillery, you get a different side of Arizona drinks. Known as D3, it is described as the state’s oldest craft distillery, family-owned since 2008 and located at Kingman Airport near Route 66.

The production story is easy to follow. Spirits are fermented, distilled, aged, and bottled on-site with a German still. The visit includes the production room and barrel room, usually taking about 20 to 30 minutes before or alongside the tasting.

The Gold Miner rum range includes white rum, dark rum, and an agave rum sweetened with agave nectar. You can also try corn whiskey moonshine, aged wheat whiskey, and Rum & Rye. That gives the stop more range than a single-spirit tasting.

The aged rum has a notable credential: an 11-year barrel reserve received a score of 99 at the 2023 International Wine and Spirit Competition in London and ranked first in its rum category. You do not need to be a rum specialist to appreciate the detail, but it gives the tasting a clear point of interest.

The vintage bar is another unusual touch. It was rescued from the old Las Vegas Strip and is associated with the Rat Pack era. That bit of design history adds character to what could otherwise be a straightforward production visit.

There is one important scheduling issue. Desert Diamond Distillery is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. On those days, the brewery may replace the distillery portion. Confirm the exact plan before you go, especially if the rum stop is the main reason you booked.

Lunch at Sirens Cafe or another local stop

Lunch is included, but the exact location can vary by day. Sirens Cafe and Custom Catering is one possible stop, and it offers a very different feel from a standard tour restaurant.

The cafe is run by a mother and daughter, Carmella Hynes and Denise McMillan. Carmella studied cooking in Florence, Italy, and the menu centers on fresh-made sandwiches, Euro-style paninis, soups, and daily specials.

The Curry Tito combines curry chicken salad with green apple, craisins, and cashews. The La Rocco panini is another signature choice. Homemade ricotta, artichoke spreads, Italian bread, and locally sliced meats give the menu a more personal touch than a generic boxed lunch.

You may eat in the mermaid-themed dining room or on the patio beside the brewery. Sirens has also received major national attention, placing at number 85 on Yelp’s 2024 list of the top 100 places to eat in the United States.

The lunch stop helps justify the price because you are not buying a tasting-only excursion. It also breaks up the alcohol portion of the day. One useful detail: gratuity may not be included, so carry extra money for customary service.

Black Bridge Brewery may provide part of the meal arrangement on certain days, and the lunch location can change to maintain the best available dining experience. Treat the cafe as a likely possibility, not a fixed guarantee.

Black Bridge Brewery on Beale Street

Black Bridge Brewery, often called B3, opened in 2013 on historic Route 66’s Beale Street. It is Kingman’s original craft brewery and has a relaxed downtown feel.

The name comes from a railroad bridge that locals used as a gathering place from the 1960s onward. Inside, you will find a compact bar, while the larger backyard patio provides room to sit and, on many weekends, hear live music from the redwood stage.

The beer list can reach more than 20 taps. Year-round choices include Evil Red IPA, Wicked Poison, Locomotive Stout, and Scorched Earth, a ghost pepper beer with a local reputation. Seasonal beers may include Prickly Pear Pale Ale.

You do not need to be an adventurous beer drinker. Ginger beer and cold-brew coffee are available for those avoiding alcohol, and the range should give you a way to find something manageable.

Food is not normally prepared on-site, but nearby restaurants deliver to your table. If Black Bridge is used for lunch, the meal arrangement may differ from the Sirens Cafe option. If it is only the final tasting stop, you can focus on the beer and patio.

I like this ending because it is less formal than a winery tasting room. You can talk, sit outside, and take in a bit of Kingman life. The one drawback is that a brewery with 20-plus taps can feel rushed if the schedule allows only about an hour.

Guides, vehicle, and group size

The tour uses an air-conditioned vehicle with a driver, bottled water, and small-group service. The maximum group size is 13, and at least two people are required for the tour to operate.

Guide quality matters on a route like this because the drive connects several stops that could otherwise feel scattered. Mike has been praised for explaining Kingman and the surrounding desert. Sue has been noted for local plant information and for keeping the day relaxed rather than pushing people through each stop. Brandon has provided strong historical background, while Bob has been valued for local stories and folklore.

Those names reflect guides who have operated the experience, not a promise that you will receive a particular person. Still, the pattern is useful: this tour works best when you enjoy conversation and regional context, not just the tasting pours.

A small vehicle can feel close on a long day. One past participant wanted a larger bus. If you prefer a roomy coach, this may not be your ideal format. The tradeoff is that a smaller group can make pickup, conversation, and timing easier.

Who should book this Route 66 tasting day?

I would recommend this tour to you if you want to see Kingman beyond the highway signs. It suits couples, friends, and families with adults who enjoy wine, spirits, beer, food, and local history in equal measure.

It is also a good fit if you do not want to designate a driver. The included transportation makes it possible to sample wine, rum, and beer without managing the road afterward.

You should think twice if you want a pure wine tour. The day includes one main winery, one distillery when available, a brewery, lunch, and a museum. It is a mixed local-culture route, not a vineyard marathon.

The same applies if you are staying in Las Vegas. The tour is not available with Las Vegas pickup according to the current details. Older descriptions of the experience and some past outings refer to Las Vegas, but you should not book this version expecting pickup there.

Free cancellation is available up to 24 hours before the start time. The tour also depends on good weather and a minimum number of participants. If the operator cancels for either reason, you can choose another date or receive a full refund.

Should you book it?

Book this tour if you want a friendly, varied day in Kingman and value transportation, lunch, local stories, and several kinds of tasting over a polished luxury setting. The 4.8 rating from 63 reviews and 94 percent recommendation rate fit the experience’s strongest qualities: guides who add color, an entertaining family winery, a worthwhile Route 66 museum, and a satisfying mix of food and drink.

Skip it if you dislike long drives, small tasting portions, changing lunch arrangements, or an occasional substitution when the distillery is closed. For the right person, $159 is fair because it covers the vehicle, driver, meal, samples, museum-oriented sightseeing, and the work of connecting the stops. Just book it as a full Kingman day, not as a quick winery visit.

FAQ

Where does the tour start?

The tour starts around 8:00 a.m., with pickup offered in Kingman. You must provide your pickup location when booking.

Is Las Vegas pickup available?

No. The current tour details state that pickup from Las Vegas is not available.

How long does the experience last?

Plan on approximately five to six hours.

Is lunch included?

Yes. Lunch is included, though the location may vary. Sirens Cafe is one possible lunch stop, and the exact arrangement depends on the day.

What happens if Desert Diamond Distillery is closed?

The distillery is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. When it is unavailable, the brewery may serve as the substitute tasting stop.

Can I cancel for a full refund?

Yes. You can cancel at least 24 hours before the local start time for a full refund. Cancellations or changes made less than 24 hours ahead are not accepted for a refund.