Barrell Craft Spirits (BCS) has sold its blending and bottling facility in Kentucky to American Craft Bottling amid “shifting” consumer demand for American whiskey in its home market.
The Louisville, Kentucky-headquartered company intends to consolidate all blending operations at its original Gilmore site, “which offers enough capacity to support current and future needs”, over the next 60 days. BCS will also cease its contract-bottling operations following the move.
The disposed-of facility, in Jeffersontown, has eight blending tanks and 64,000 gallons of capacity. All staff will be transferred to the Gilmore site (also in Louisville) and no jobs will be affected, founder & CEO Joe Beatrice confirmed.
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“We regularly refine our commercial strategy to stay ahead of evolving industry trends to support long-term growth,” Beatrice said. “While the economic environment has presented challenges across the spirits industry, it has sharpened our focus and reinforced the importance of proactive decision-making.”
Asked to expand on these trends, he told Global Drinks Intel: “When we originally purchased the Jeffersontown property, consumer demand for whiskey was at an all-time high. Since then, purchasing patterns have shifted, and the market has seen higher-than-normal inventory levels at both distributor and retail tiers.
“We’ve also recognised that contract bottling has diverted time and resources from our core business priorities.”
Founded in 2013, BCS selects and blends products that explore different distillation methods, barrels and ageing environments. Its releases are sold in 49 US states and exported to markets including Australia, South Korea and the UK.
