Kentucky distillery in bankruptcy since last year could be sold
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Buyer is Apogee 21 Holdings Inc. of Delaware or its nominee Samuel T. DamGoode Whiskey.
- Apogee would pay $16.7 million including assuming $14.5 million owed to SummitBridge.
- Sale must receive bankruptcy court approval and creditors may object to the plan.
A Kentucky distillery that has been idle and in bankruptcy since last summer apparently has a buyer.
Luca Mariano Distillery in Danville had been set for an auction on June 4, but in filings in the federal bankruptcy court in Michigan, the company said the auction had been canceled after receiving only one bidder despite widespread solicitation of interest throughout the distilling industry.
According to the court filing, the would-be buyer is Apogee 21 Holdings Inc. of Delaware or its nominee, the Samuel T. Damgoode Whiskey Co., a Wyoming corporation. The company will pay an aggregate purchase price of more than $16.7 million.
Who is buying Luca Mariano?
Apogee CEO Mark Newman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. According to Apogee’s website, Newman has more than 40 years of experience in the California wine industry, primarily in wine retail and distribution.
Apogee is a publicly traded wine and spirits holding company with brands including Noble Oak bourbon and rye, Monkey in Paradise vodka, Andale tequila, John Lee Hooker spirits and more.
Luca Mariano’s parent company filed for bankruptcy in July 2025; the distillery itself followed suit in November, with more than $34.5 million in debts. Founded by Francesco Viola, the distillery at 1695 Old Lancaster Road in Danville had barely finished construction when the company shut down.
According to the sale documents, the net proceeds from the sale will be short $18.6 million on total secured claims of now $35.7 million.
According to the proposed sale agreement, Apogee 21 would assume $14.5 million in debt to SummitBridge in exchange for the distillery and 6,000 barrels of whiskey on site in a rickhouse.
Some of the land is mortgaged to Farm Credit and would not be included in the sale; Apogee would have to pay off a $2 million mortgage to Farm Credit. Apogee also would have to pay hundreds of thousands in “cure costs” under assumed contracts and a prorated portion of property taxes due.
The sale still must be approved by the bankruptcy court to be finalized. Creditors, including unsecured creditors, may object to the plan.
Other potential distillery sales
This is the second troubled Kentucky distillery that is going through a transaction. Garrard County Distilling in Lancaster will be up for auction after Sazerac purchased the debt and moved for foreclosure sale. Sazerac has said they also plan to bid on the property. Garrard County Distilling has been closed and in receivership for more than a year.
Tennessee distiller Uncle Nearest is also in receivership, with more than $100 million owed to Kentucky lender Farm Credit Mid-America; on June 1 the receiver notified the federal court that a potential buyer had been made an offer. The buyer, who has not been publicly named, is “an investment firm with an African-American ownership and leadership structure” that intends to maintain existing workforce and honor the brand’s cultural significance, according to court documents.
Media mogul Jay-Z has previously invested in Uncle Nearest through an offshoot of his Marcy-Pen venture capital firm, formed in late 2024 and owned by Jay-Z, Jay Brown, Larry Marcus and Robbie Robinson, along with D’Rita Robinson. Jay-Z is a rapper, businessman and record executive married to Beyoncé.
