Gray Whale
O'NEILL VINTNERS & DISTILLERS, O'NEILL BEVERAGES CO. LLC — PARLIER, CA
California
Gray Whale's founders went through 152 experimental gin recipes before settling on the one they bottled, CSQ reported. Read the brand history
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| Label Name | Spirit Type | Status | Approval Date | Producer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Gray Whale VODKA 80-89 PROOF | Vodka 80-89 Proof | Approved | 2026-06-10 | O'NEILL VINTNERS & DISTILLERS, O'NEILL BEVERAGES CO. LLC |
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Gray Whale at a Glance
Gray Whale has 1 distinct product with 5 total TTB label approvals, including Vodka 80-89 Proof. Labels approved between 2025-06-24 and 2026-06-10. Label origins on file: California.
At a Glance data sourced from public TTB records.
Gray Whale: A California Gin Brand Makes Its Move Into Vodka
Jan and Marsh Mokhtari were on the cliffs of Big Sur watching a pod of migrating gray whales when the brand idea came, and they bought the Golden State Distillery domain on the drive home, CSQ wrote in 2020. In April 2026 Gray Whale Vodka launched nationally at $25 to $30, slightly below the gin at $30 to $35, Shanken News Daily reported.
Who started Gray Whale
A bar the couple visited on vacation with their two daughters in Napa and Big Sur had no local spirit to offer, Marsh Mokhtari told Southbay in 2019. Everywhere made wine, he said, but nobody distilled spirits. Jan Mokhtari had spent more than two decades as a creative director on campaigns for brands including Samsung and Google, and Marsh Mokhtari hosted food and adventure shows on networks including National Geographic and The Food Network, CSQ reported.
How the gin was developed
The couple settled on gin, and it took two more years before liquid flowed from their stills in Sonoma, CSQ wrote. Its six botanicals, limes, juniper berries, mint, fir trees, almonds, and kombu sea kelp, span the Californian portion of the whales' migratory path, Southbay wrote.
What Gray Whale Vodka is made from
Gray Whale Vodka is a small-batch spirit from Gray Whale Spirits Co. distilled from grain and California grapes without additives or added sugar, The Daily Pour wrote in April 2026. The brand describes a clean, balanced profile with light floral and citrus notes, a silky texture, and a crisp finish, the same article said.
How the vodka was launched
The vodka comes in a frosted bottle with the same profile as the gin's aqua blue packaging, and Mike Dee, president of Deutsch Family Wines & Spirits, called it the biggest spirits launch in Deutsch's history, Shanken News Daily reported. Dee told the publication that it had been some years since one brand, Tito's, began dominating the vodka category, with no innovation of any significance in all that time. Adding vodka lets the company introduce Gray Whale Spirits Co. to a broader audience, Dee said in a news release quoted by Beverage Dynamics.
How Gray Whale is selling
By 2025 the gin had risen 10% to 40,000 cases in the United States, Shanken News Daily reported in 2026, citing Impact Databank. See the TTB label records for Gray Whale on this page.
Sources
- Shanken News Daily. “Exclusive: Deutsch Extends Gray Whale Into The Vodka Category.” 27 April 2026. https://www.shankennewsdaily.com/2026/04/27/39704/exclusive-deutsch-extends-gray-whale-into-the-vodka-category/
- Beverage Dynamics (Beverage Information Group). “Gray Whale Vodka.” 6 May 2026. https://bevinfogroup.com/2026/05/06/gray-whale-vodka/
- The Daily Pour. “Gray Whale Vodka.” 28 April 2026. https://thedailypour.com/spirit/gray-whale-vodka/
- CSQ (C-Suite Quarterly). “This Gin Brand Bottles the California Coastline.” April 2020. https://csq.com/2020/04/this-gin-brand-bottles-the-california-coastline/
- Southbay (The Golden State Company). “Married Distillery Founders Jan and Marsh Mokhtari Put a Fragrant Coastal Journey in a Bottle.” 29 July 2019. https://www.oursouthbay.com/married-distillery-founders-jan-and-marsh-mokhtari-put-a-fragrant-coastal-journey-in-a-bottle/
- TTB Public COLA Registry via BUY.VODKA data snapshot (src/data/labels.json, local build 26 October 2026). “Gray Whale” label approvals. Local read-only query, 26 October 2026.
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Produced At
O'neill Vintners & Distillers, O'neill Beverages CO. LLCRelated Brands
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