Kentucky brewery closes 2 taproom restaurants amid lawsuits over debts, rent, taxes
Kentucky brewery Goodwood Brewing closed two taprooms and restaurants in Louisville abruptly on March 30.
Owner Ted Mitzlaff, in an email, confirmed that
the taproom/restaurant at Main & Clay and the one at Whiskey Row at 121 W. Main St. location are both closed.
“Goodwood is going through a major reorganization,” Mitzlaff said. “The Whiskey Row and NuLu operations were closed. Lexington and Frankfort are full steam ahead and we will have some exciting news to report in the very near future.
Goodwood has a location at Lexington Green . There are other locations in Frankfort, Owensboro and in O’Fallon, Missouri, according to Goodwood’s website.
But the brewer is facing multiple lawsuits by an investor, by a landlord and by vendors. It also is still paying off back taxes owed to the state.
Last year, the Lexington location was sued by its landlord as well, but that was dismissed in October.
In Jefferson Circuit Court, Goodwood is being sued by its landlord. According to a lawsuit filed on March 6, Goodwood owes about $225,000 in unpaid rent for January, February and March as well as unpaid property taxes for the Whiskey Row location.
A separate lawsuit filed in October in Jefferson Circuit Court alleges that Goodwood Brewing Co. owes more than $125,000 to Sysco Louisville; Sysco filed a motion for summary judgment in that case on March 11.
Creation Gardens, another vendor, also sued in Jefferson Circuit Court in January 2025, alleging Goodwood Brewing owes them $54,000. The case is pending.
In Daviess Circuit Court, Goodwood, Mitzlaff and Peter McDermott were sued on March 11, 2026, by Entertainment at the Enclave, the landlord on the location at 101 Frederica St. in Owensboro. The lawsuit alleges the taproom and restaurant owes more than $120,000 in rent dating to November. It wasn’t immediately clear what McDermott’s role was at that location.
In Franklin Circuit Court, multiple Goodwood locations have been sued by the Finance and Administration Cabinet for back taxes. In 2023, the brewery reached an agreement to pay back more than $404,000 in installments; that case is ongoing.
Goodwood started in Louisville in 2005. It began as Bluegrass Brewing Co. but rebranded in 2015 and the company began an expansion, specializing in beer aged in used bourbon barrels. The company operates taproom restaurants with a menu of burgers and Southern staples.
This story was originally published March 31, 2026 at 10:55 AM.
