Bankrupt Luca Mariano Distillery seeks buyer
Kentucky-based whiskey maker Luca Mariano Distillery has entered a court-supervised sale process after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy just months after opening.
In July, LMD Holdings – the parent firm of Luca Mariano Distillery – filed for bankruptcy in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The same action was also filed for the distillery, located in Danville, Kentucky, in November.
According to the filing on 12 November, LMD owes money to more than 50 creditors. These include farm suppliers, equipment companies, utilities, and state tax agencies.
On 14 January, judge Paul R Hage granted a motion allowing LMD Holdings and Luca Mariano Distillery to run a court-supervised sale process for substantially all of their assets.
Serious bidders must submit offers by 4pm EST on 27 February. A private auction is scheduled for 2 March in Southfield, Michigan, if multiple qualified bids emerge. A final hearing on 10 March will determine whether the court approves the winning bid.
The process also allows for the selection of a ‘stalking horse’ bidder – an initial purchaser whose offer sets a floor price and establishes terms against which competing bids are measured. If that bidder loses at auction, they may get up to US$100,000 reimbursed for legal and professional expenses.
Francesco S Viola II, founder of LMD, envisioned creating a ‘Napa Valley of Bourbon’ in central Kentucky and named the newly opened distillery after his son.
The distillery held an opening ceremony in June for its ‘farm-to-bottle’ site, which features the ‘oldest’ stone house in Kentucky.
Less than a year later, the distillery accumulated a high level of debt, with liabilities estimated between US$10 million and US$50m.
LMD owes US$1.28m to Keystone Industrial for construction work.
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