Follow the Outer Banks Brewery & Spirits Trail

By Outer Banks Visitors Bureau
Dec. 01, 2025

For travelers who appreciate great flavor, Outer Banks breweries and tasting rooms bring the coastal character into every glass. With small-batch breweries, relaxed wine bars, and scenic vineyards, the Outer Banks Brewery & Spirits Trail helps visitors experience the full range.

Running from the Northern Beaches to Hatteras Island, the route highlights the best breweries, wineries, and distilleries throughout the OBX. Please enjoy responsibly and take advantage of local cabs, Ubers, or the OBX Party Bus.

Looking for more local taste along the way? The full collection of Outer Banks bars and restaurants offers additional worthwhile stops.

Northern Beaches

The Vineyard Voyage - Duck

The Vineyard Voyage begins in the stylish town of Duck on the Outer Banks and crosses Currituck Sound for wine tasting and a 4x4 safari tour at Sanctuary Vineyards on the mainland. Guests can explore its 33 acres of viniferous grapes, follow the vine-to-glass process, take in the aroma of French oak barrels, and meet the master winemakers in a setting shaped by waterfowl and farming heritage. Sanctuary Vineyards produces over 7,000 cases of wine seasonally and has won over 100 accolades for their award winning wines.

TRIO Restaurant and Market - Kitty Hawk

TRiO brings together retail, tasting, and dining in a lively space with an inviting yet cosmopolitan feel. The experience centers on simple pleasures, genuine flavors, and good times, with wine, beer, cheese, casually inventive food, and more. Part gourmet wine, beer and cheese market and part restaurant with a wine bar and tap house, TRiO lets guests enjoy the best of the worlds of wine, beer and cheese either on-site or at home.

Tap That OBX - Kitty Hawk

At this dog friendly, oceanside stop, the extensive lineup of bourbons, tequilas, and beers on tap is reason enough to come in. Inside, guests also find a cigar lounge and game room with free options such as darts, pool, and foosball. The easygoing atmosphere and comfortable setting are built for lingering. Food is not served, but visitors can bring snacks or pick up a juicy burger from Art’s Place next door for a beachside Outer Banks brewery pairing.

Chip's Wine & Beer - Kill Devil Hills

An Outer Banks brewery guide would not feel complete without Chip's Wine & Beer, home to over 2,000 wines and 600 craft beers. The shopping experience includes wine tasting machines, six beer taps, and a helpful, knowledgeable staff so guests can sample while browsing. The selection goes beyond drinks, with cigars, pint glasses, chocolates, and 60 artisan-made olive oils and vinegars from Outer Banks Olive Oil Co., now found inside Chip's Kill Devil Hills location.

Outer Banks Brewing Station – Kill Devil Hills

Known as America’s first wind-powered brewery, Outer Banks Brewing Station pairs live entertainment, excellent beer, and flavorful food at reasonable prices. Brewmaster Scott Meyer creates beers brewed on-site, from crisp pilsners and IPAs to smooth stouts. The brewery remains a local favorite for its inventive energy and its place as a community gathering spot for craft beer, live music, and coastal culture.

Swells’a Brewery and Tasting Room - Kill Devil Hills

The source page includes a quoted description of Swells’a Brewery and Tasting Room that presents it as a welcoming, home-like favorite gathering space in the Outer Banks. The atmosphere is casual and friendly, with roomy, comfortable seating. The property includes a tasting room, a large outdoor patio, and a beautiful rooftop deck with standout ocean views. Swells’a is dog and kid-friendly and offers rotating events such as live music, pizza nights, yoga sessions, and more. The changing lineup of local pours leans IPA-centric, and favorites can be purchased to take home.

Fish Heads Bar & Grill - Nags Head

Set on the Outer Banks Fishing Pier, this family-friendly bar and restaurant serves wide-open views, live music, and classic beach food at approachable prices, including fresh fish tacos, fish baskets, and killer burgers. Drinks include 33 craft brews, wine, bubbly libations, and sake cocktails. Along with daily drink specials, Fish Heads offers its happy-hour shrimp special: 20-cent seasoned steamed shrimp from 4-6 p.m. Because beach access is on-site, parents can dine while kids play in the sand and search for shells.

Roanoke Island & Dare Mainland

Outer Banks Distilling Company - Manteo

The four owners of Outer Banks Distilling Company first met years earlier while working at a local brewery in Kill Devil Hills, bonding over a shared appreciation for good beer and rum. Today, the company connects small-batch rum with deep local history. In the heart of Manteo, the distillery provides tastings, tours, and a behind-the-scenes view of how award-winning Kill Devil Rum is produced, drawing inspiration from the shipwrecks behind the area’s “Graveyard of the Atlantic” nickname.

NouVines - Manteo

NouVines delivers a polished but easygoing wine experience in a rustic, intimate downtown Manteo setting. This locally loved wine bar and shop offers thoughtfully selected wines, charcuterie boards, and small bites in a warm atmosphere. Visitors can come by for Thursday night trivia or stop in on the weekend to enjoy live music with a smooth glass. After a day spent exploring Outer Banks breweries, NouVines adds a slower, charming change of pace.

The Mother Vine - Manteo

America’s oldest cultivated grapevine, the Mother Vine has grown in Manteo on Roanoke Island for more than four centuries. This circa-1584 Scuppernong grape, a natural offshoot of the Muscadine that only grows wild on Roanoke Island, continues to stand as a living piece of Outer Banks history. Its legacy is tied closely to the story of America’s first attempted English settlement, The Lost Colony, giving it an added sense of mystery. It is a memorable stop for both history lovers and wine enthusiasts.

Lost Colony Brewery - Stumpy Point

The Lost Colony Brewery focuses on British and Irish style beers. Marris Otter malt serves as the base, with combinations of Black Patent, Brown malt, Crystal malt, and Roasted Barley added according to each beer. Hop varieties include Fuggles, East Kent Golding and Challenger. The Stumpy Point brewery operates from a 10,000 square foot former boat shop and is capable of producing 1,000 gallons of beer at a time.

Hatteras Island

Lighthouse Sports Bar - Buxton

Farther south, Lighthouse Sports Bar has sampled thousands of standout beers to assemble one of the most extensive selections of local North Carolina beers and ciders. The full bar features local beers and wines, plus pool tables, darts, live music, and additional entertainment. It is open for brunch, lunch, happy hour, and dinner, with late-night bites available to keep the evening going.

Cape Cork & Bottle - Avon

Cape Cork & Bottle, a new boutique wine and beer lounge in Avon, gives wine lovers an easy place to settle in. With fine wines, local brews, and artisanal snacks chosen with care, this relaxed hangout welcomes guests indoors or onto the patio for a glass. It is a strong stop for visitors traveling the southern end of the Outer Banks Beer, Wine & Spirits Trail.

BONUS Outer Banks Brewery & Spirits Trail Extension

Travelers continuing beyond Hatteras can take the ferry to Ocracoke Island and stop at 1718 Brewing. Known for creative small-batch beers and a friendly taproom, it offers a memorable finale to an Outer Banks brewery adventure.