Bars With 23rd State THC Drinks Near Minnesota
There's a specific moment that sends people to their phones to search "bars with THC drinks near me." Maybe it's a Friday night out and you'd rather skip the hangover. Maybe you've gone "California sober" and want something to hold besides a club soda. Or maybe you're simply curious about all the buzz around hemp-derived THC beverages and would like to try one in a relaxed, social setting before stocking your own fridge.
Whatever brought you here, the good news is that the answer is increasingly, "Yes — there's probably a spot closer than you think." THC drinks have moved from a novelty hiding in the back of a single cooler to a legitimate menu category at taprooms, restaurants, and dedicated cannabis cocktail bars across the country. The not-so-simple part is where you can find them and how they're served, both of which depend heavily on the state you're standing in.
This guide breaks down what a "THC drink at a bar" actually means in 2026, how to find a venue near you, what to expect when you order, and what to do if there isn't a spot in your zip code just yet.
First stop: two Minnesota spots pouring 23rd State Fresh Press
If you're in or passing through Minnesota — the most established THC-beverage market in the country — two spots make an easy first stop, and both pour 23rd State's award-winning Fresh Press pear cider alternative.
Earl Giles (Northeast Minneapolis). Tucked into a sprawling, plant-filled 18,000-square-foot space on Quincy Street NE, Earl Giles is equal parts restaurant, distillery, and bottling company — the kind of beverage emporium where craft cocktails, wood-fired pizza, and warm hospitality all share one room. It's a destination in its own right, and it carries 23rd State Fresh Press, so you can settle into one of the city's most atmospheric rooms and order a low-dose THC cider instead of something stronger. Walk in or book ahead — it fills up, especially on weekends.
Up Yonder Bar & Grille (Grand Marais). Heading north? If your weekend points toward the North Shore, Lake Superior, or the Boundary Waters, make a stop in Grand Marais. Up Yonder Bar & Grille sits right on Highway 61 — the scenic ribbon that hugs the lake — and it's a beloved restaurant and live-music venue where the food, the bands, and the views all earn their reputation. As a 23rd State partner, it carries Fresh Press too, making it a perfect place to unwind with a THC cider after a day of hiking, paddling, or simply driving the most beautiful stretch of road in the state.
Two spots, two very different vibes — proof that a great THC drink out can mean a buzzy city distillery or a cabin-country roadhouse. The rest of this guide will help you find your own, wherever you are.
What counts as a "THC drink" at a bar?
Before you go hunting, it helps to know what you're actually looking for. The THC drinks served at bars and taprooms are almost always low-dose, hemp-derived beverages — not the high-potency products you'd find in a dispensary in a fully recreational state.
Here's the quick chemistry. The 2018 Farm Bill federally legalized hemp and the cannabinoids derived from it, as long as the finished product stays at or below 0.3% delta-9 THC by dry weight. That single threshold opened the door for a whole category of drinks infused with hemp-derived delta-9 THC, typically dosed somewhere between 2.5 mg and 10 mg per serving. It's the same THC molecule found in cannabis — it just comes from the hemp plant and arrives in your glass in a carefully measured amount.
A few things make these drinks bar-friendly:
- They're precisely dosed. A can or a pour tells you exactly how many milligrams you're getting, which makes pacing yourself far easier than with an unlabeled edible.
- They're fast-acting. Most quality THC beverages use nano-emulsified or water-soluble cannabinoids, which the body absorbs much faster than a traditional edible. Instead of waiting an hour and a half to feel anything, you'll often notice the effects within 15 to 45 minutes — closer to the rhythm of sipping a drink.
- They come in familiar formats. You'll find THC seltzers, sparkling sodas, "near-beer" style brews, sparkling wine alternatives, and full-on THC cocktails. Some bars even offer infusion drops that turn any non-alcoholic drink into a THC beverage.
The format you'll see on the menu depends on the venue. A brewery taproom might pour a THC seltzer on draft. A craft cocktail bar might shake up an infused cocktail with 10 mg of THC instead of two ounces of spirits. And a bottle shop with a tasting room might let you sample a sparkling wine alternative before you buy a bottle to take home.
Why everyone is suddenly searching for THC drinks near them
The surge in "bars with THC drinks near me" searches isn't a fluke — it tracks with a genuine shift in how people drink.
THC beverages were a niche curiosity just a few years ago. Today they're one of the fastest-growing segments in the entire beverage industry. Whitney Economics, a leading cannabis-and-hemp research firm, estimated the category generated somewhere between $1 billion and $1.3 billion in U.S. sales in 2024 — and that figure is still climbing, with projections for steady double-digit annual growth and total demand potentially reaching nearly $10 billion.
What's driving it? A few cultural currents are converging at once:
- The "mindful drinking" movement. Non-alcoholic beer, zero-proof spirits, and functional beverages have all reshaped what people expect from a night out. THC drinks slot neatly into that same lane.
- No-hangover appeal. A low-dose THC seltzer delivers a social, relaxed buzz without the next-morning regret, the empty calories, or the carbs of a few beers.
- Sober-curious and "Cali sober" lifestyles. For people cutting back on alcohol — but who still want to participate in the ritual of going out and holding a drink — THC beverages offer a way back into the room.
- The data is catching up to the experience. Research like MoreBetter's Real-World Infused Beverage Study, which surveyed thousands of participants across dozens of brands, has documented that a meaningful share of consumers are actively substituting THC drinks for alcohol. The category isn't speculative anymore — it's a measurable change in behavior.
In other words, when you search for a bar that serves THC drinks, you're not chasing a fad. You're part of a broad move toward beverages that fit a more intentional, wellness-minded lifestyle.
The honest answer: it depends on your state
Here's the part no clickbait listicle wants to admit: there's no national map where every dot is guaranteed to be open. The legality of selling THC drinks in a bar — and whether a venue can serve them alongside alcohol at all — is a patchwork that varies state by state and is actively evolving.
A quick tour of the landscape as of 2026:
- Minnesota is the gold standard. It legalized low-dose hemp-derived THC edibles and beverages back in 2022 and, in July 2024, became the first state to explicitly allow bars, restaurants, and breweries to serve THC drinks on tap. More on this below, because it's the clearest picture of what a mature market looks like.
- Colorado is moving in. Lawmakers introduced legislation aiming to let licensed alcohol establishments — bars, restaurants, music venues, and liquor stores — obtain an additional permit to serve hemp-derived beverages with up to 10 mg of THC per serving.
- Florida has dedicated THC cocktail bars. Spots like all-hemp cannabis cocktail bars have opened in cities such as St. Petersburg, serving THC "cocktails," seltzers, and even THC-infused takes on classic spirits.
- Some states are tightening up. Rhode Island, for example, allowed more than 100 retailers to serve THC beverages starting in 2024, but regulators have since debated whether to restrict serving them at venues that also hold liquor licenses. The rules there remain unsettled.
Layered on top of all this is a major federal question. A change to the legal definition of hemp — connected to provisions working their way through Congress, with a compliance deadline pointed at November 2026 — could reshape which products stay federally legal and how they're sold. The hemp beverage industry, which supports hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions in wages and tax revenue, has been pushing to delay or amend the change, and negotiations are ongoing.
The takeaway: always check your local laws, and don't assume a venue in another state's photos is something you can replicate in your own town this weekend. The rest of this guide is about working with the reality on the ground where you are.
How to actually find a bar with THC drinks near you
Search engines will point you to a few options, but the most reliable way to find a real, currently-serving venue is to combine a few tactics.
1. Search smarter on Google Maps. Beyond "bars with THC drinks near me," try more specific phrases that match how venues describe themselves: "THC seltzer on tap," "THC cocktail bar," "hemp drinks," "cannabis beverages," or your city plus "THC drinks." Maps results surface menus, hours, and recent reviews — and reviews are often where you'll learn whether a place still carries these drinks.
2. Start with breweries and taprooms. In states where THC drinks are legal, craft breweries have led the charge. Many already brew or stock a THC seltzer or near-beer because it lets them serve customers who aren't drinking alcohol that night. If a taproom is on your list, its website or Untappd-style menu will usually say so.
3. Look at liquor-licensed restaurants and bars. As more states create a permit pathway, full-service bars and restaurants are adding a THC option to their drink menus the same way they added zero-proof cocktails. A quick scan of an online menu — or the "drinks" section of a venue's site — will tell you.
4. Use a dedicated finder map or app. A handful of crowdsourced maps and directories now track which restaurants, bars, breweries, and coffee shops serve cannabis beverages on-site. In the Twin Cities, for instance, locals have built community-maintained maps specifically because there wasn't one good central source. Search "[your city] THC drink map" and you may strike gold.
5. Call ahead — every time. This is the single most important step. Menus change, laws shift, and a "THC takeover" night might only happen on certain days. A 30-second phone call ("Do you serve THC beverages, and do I need to be 21?") saves a wasted trip.
6. Tap your local cannabis community. Local hemp shops, bottle shops, co-ops, and cannabis-focused social media accounts almost always know which nearby venues are pouring. Following a few regional pages is one of the fastest ways to hear about new openings and pop-up events.
Minnesota: the country's model for THC on tap
If you want to see where this is all heading, look at Minnesota. The state's hemp-derived THC beverage scene went from novelty to statewide staple in roughly a year, and it's the clearest example of what a healthy, well-regulated market looks like.
A few things make Minnesota distinctive:
- THC drinks are sold like adult beverages, not dispensary products. The 2022 law created a separate regulatory pathway from the medical cannabis program. That means you'll find compliant THC drinks in liquor stores, bottle shops, breweries, and even some grocery stores — not a dispensary — and no medical card is required. Any adult 21 and over can buy them.
- The dosing rules are clear. Beverages contain no more than 5 mg of THC per serving and 50 mg per package, derived from hemp, with packaging and lab-testing standards built into the law.
- You can order them on tap. Since the July 2024 rule change, taprooms and licensed venues can pour THC drinks by the glass rather than only selling sealed cans. Taproom managers have praised the change for being more approachable — not everyone wants to commit to a whole can, and a single pour lets the curious try a sip and see how they feel.
For visitors and locals alike, that translates to real options: independent bottle shops and co-ops with chilled THC selections, craft breweries running "THC takeover" days, and taprooms with a rotating infused tap. It's also where Minnesota-made brands shine — including 23rd State, the woman-founded, family-run beverage company behind low-dose drinks like Fresh Press, Blush Crush, Citra Stash, and SHAKE. Whether you're swapping a craft beer for a THC seltzer at a tailgate or cracking open a sparkling alternative after a North Shore hike, Minnesota has built the kind of everyday access the rest of the country is racing to catch up to.
What to expect when you order
Walking into a venue that serves THC drinks for the first time can feel unfamiliar. Here's how to make it a good experience.
Start low and go slow. This is the golden rule of THC beverages. If you're new to them, begin with a single low-dose serving — 2.5 to 5 mg is a sensible starting point — and give it time to take effect before reaching for another. Because these drinks are fast-acting, you'll usually have a sense of how you feel within half an hour.
Mind the onset. A THC drink doesn't hit the moment it touches your lips the way a sip of liquor does. Pace yourself around that 15-to-45-minute window so you don't accidentally "stack" doses before the first one lands.
Hydrate. Just like with alcohol, sipping water alongside your drink keeps the experience smooth and pleasant.
Don't mix THC and alcohol. Even in venues where both are available, combining the two can amplify impairment and lead to discomfort. If you're drinking THC beverages, it's smartest to make it a THC night, not a hybrid one.
Plan your ride home. THC beverages are intoxicating. Treat them exactly as you would alcohol when it comes to driving — line up a rideshare, a designated driver, or transit before you go out.
How to spot a quality THC drink
Not all THC beverages are created equal, and a good bar should be carrying brands that take the craft seriously. Whether you're reading a menu or scanning a shelf, look for:
- Clear dosing. Every product should tell you the milligrams of THC (and any other cannabinoids, like CBG) per serving. Ambiguity is a red flag.
- Third-party lab testing. Reputable brands publish lab results — often via a QR code on the can or bottle — confirming potency and safety for each batch.
- Real research and transparency. The most credible brands are investing in actual consumer data rather than relying on hype. 23rd State, for example, has anchored its identity in independent research, contributing its Fresh Press and SHAKE products to MoreBetter's Real-World Infused Beverage Study and publishing observational data from real participants. In an industry still earning consumer trust, that evidence-forward approach is exactly the standard to look for.
- Thoughtful formulation. Low-calorie, low-sugar recipes made with food-grade ingredients signal a brand that cares about the whole experience, not just the buzz.
When a venue stocks brands that check these boxes, you can be confident you're getting a consistent, enjoyable, and safe drink — not a mystery in a can.
No THC bar near you yet? Bring the experience home
If you've done the searching and come up empty — which is still the reality in plenty of states and small towns — you don't have to miss out. Where it's legal to purchase and have these products shipped, you can build the bar experience at home.
This is where a brand like 23rd State makes it easy to host your own elevated evening:
- Fresh Press is an award-winning, pear-forward cider alternative infused with THC and CBG — a refreshing, crisp swap for a glass of wine or a hard cider.
- Blush Crush Infused Bubbly comes in an elegant, sparkling-wine-inspired 750mL bottle with a balanced blend of 10 mg THC and 10 mg CBG, made for celebrations and shared moments — the kind of thing you'd pop instead of prosecco.
- SHAKE, the first edible-glitter dropper infused with hemp-derived delta-9 THC, turns any drink into a THC beverage. Add a few sparkling drops to a mocktail, a seltzer, or a fancy non-alcoholic recipe and you've effectively created your own THC cocktail bar on the kitchen counter — without changing the flavor of your drink.
Hosting a "THC mocktail" night, in many ways, gives you more control than a bar does: you choose the dose, the flavors, and the pace. It's also a low-pressure way to introduce curious friends to the category before they ever go looking for "bars with THC drinks near me" themselves.
Frequently asked questions
Are THC drinks at bars legal? It depends on your state. Hemp-derived THC beverages that meet the federal 0.3% delta-9 threshold are broadly legal, but whether a bar can sell or serve them — especially alongside alcohol — varies. Minnesota explicitly allows it; other states are debating or restricting it. Always confirm local rules.
Do I need a medical marijuana card to buy a THC drink? In states like Minnesota, no. Low-dose hemp-derived THC beverages are sold through a separate pathway from the medical cannabis program, so any adult 21 and over can purchase them — no card, no dispensary required.
Can a bar serve THC drinks and alcohol at the same time? Sometimes. Some states permit licensed venues to offer both; others prohibit combining THC sales with a liquor license. Regardless of what's allowed, mixing THC and alcohol in the same sitting isn't recommended.
How much THC is in these drinks? Most are low-dose, commonly 2.5 to 10 mg of THC per serving. Minnesota caps beverages at 5 mg per serving and 50 mg per package. Always read the label and start with a low amount if you're new.
How long do THC drinks take to kick in? Quality THC beverages are formulated for fast onset — typically 15 to 45 minutes — thanks to water-soluble or nano-emulsified cannabinoids. That's much faster than a traditional edible.
Will a THC drink show up on a drug test? Yes. Even hemp-derived delta-9 THC is still THC, and it can produce a positive result on a standard drug test. If you're subject to testing, it's safest to abstain.
Can I drive after a THC drink? No. THC beverages are intoxicating. Arrange a rideshare, designated driver, or transit, exactly as you would after drinking alcohol.
What's the difference between a THC seltzer and THC beer? A THC seltzer is essentially flavored sparkling water infused with cannabinoids. "THC beer" is brewed to taste like beer — IPAs, lagers, stouts — but contains 0.0% alcohol and is infused with hemp-derived THC instead. Both are non-alcoholic and regulated under hemp law.
The bottom line
Searching "bars with THC drinks near me" puts you at the front edge of one of the most exciting shifts in how people socialize and unwind. In states like Minnesota, finding a taproom or bottle shop pouring a precisely dosed, lab-tested THC beverage is genuinely easy. In others, the scene is still emerging — and the smartest move is to search specifically, call ahead, and keep an eye on your local cannabis community for new openings.
Wherever you land, the principles are the same: start low, hydrate, never mix THC with alcohol, and choose brands that lead with transparency and real research. And if there's no THC bar near you yet, you can always bring the experience home with the right drinks on hand.
Here's to elevating your night out — responsibly, deliciously, and legally.
23rd State is a woman-founded, family-run cannabis beverage brand based in Minnesota, crafting research-backed, low-dose infused drinks for adults seeking a thoughtful alternative to alcohol. Must be 21+. Please consume responsibly.
