The spirits business struggled in 2025 with a number of distilleries submitting for chapter, and in some circumstances, closing down operations.
Most of the distillers blamed financial misery on the rising prices of labor and merchandise pushed by inflation and modifications in shoppers’ attitudes towards ingesting spirits.
Unfavorable financial points resulted within the U.S. spirits business struggling a 2.8% decline in gross sales and a 3.2% drop in quantity within the first half of 2025, in response to NeilsenIQ, Beverage Trade reported.
Spirits firms filed for chapter
Among the many distilleries to file chapter and exit of enterprise was Littleton, Colo.-based 52eighty Distilling Corp., which filed for Chapter 7 chapter to liquidate its property on Oct. 14, 2025.
The corporate mentioned it was damage by rising prices and pullbacks in client spending.
Distiller Rogue Ales & Spirits mother or father, Oregon Brewing Firm, closed operations on Nov. 14 and filed for Chapter 7 liquidation on Nov. 24. The corporate claimed money owed owed to Lincoln County and the Port of Newport in Oregon drove it into monetary misery.
Whiskey beverage model Wilder Whiskey, the Kannapolis, N.C., maker of ready-to-drink Wilder Whiskey Seltzer, filed its Chapter 7 petition on Dec. 23 to liquidate its property earlier than it completed its fourth yr in enterprise.
Wilder Whiskey is owned by its success firm, Full Circle, which relies in Florida. The corporate didn’t point out a cause for submitting for chapter liquidation, however Wilder Whiskey had been in search of traders on its web site.
Whiskey firm Chapter 7 bankruptcies
- 52eighty Distilling Corp., Oct. 14, 2025
- Rogue Ales & Spirits/Oregon Brewing Firm, Nov. 24, 2025
- Wilder Whiskey, Dec. 23, 2025
In different situations, distillers closed operations however did not have to file for chapter.
Tacoma, Wash.-based McCallum & Sons Whisky Co., a premier boutique Scotch whisky and cognac bottle store, revealed on its web site that it’s liquidating its stock and shutting completely on April 30, 2025, and didn’t file for chapter.
Heritage Distilling Firm closes its tasting rooms and distilling operations.
Shutterstock
Heritage Distilling Firm closes tasting rooms
And now, award-winning spirits distiller Heritage Distilling Firm, which produced whiskeys, vodkas, gins, and rums, closed down its distilling operations and 5 tasting rooms in Oregon and Washington on New 12 months’s Eve 2025 as a part of an out-of-court restructuring of its operations.
The Gig Harbor, Wash.-based spirits distiller first introduced its plans in October 2025 to shut its tasting rooms in Gig Harbor, Roslyn, and Tumwater, Wash., in addition to two places in Eugene, Ore., on Dec. 31 and shift its distillery operations to contract manufacturing.
“This was an extremely difficult decision and one we did not make lightly,” Co-Founder and CEO of IP Technique Justin Stiefel mentioned. “For more than 13 years, our tasting rooms have been the heart of our spirits business and the cornerstone of the community for the connections we built.”
“But changing consumer behaviors, increasing costs and recently-enacted and proposed taxes at the state level made future investments in this part of our business operations unsustainable,” the founder mentioned.
The corporate, based in 2011, additionally believed it was the best time to shut the tasting rooms, as a lot of its retail leases have been arising for renewal in 2026.
“Given that many of our retail leases are coming up for renewal in 2026, we believe this is the right time to implement these changes as it is no longer prudent for the business to sign additional long-term leases on retail spaces,” Stiefel mentioned.
Heritage Distilling Firm closed places
- Heritage Distilling Firm Waterfront: Gig Harbor, Wash.
- Heritage Distilling Firm Roslyn: Roslyn, Wash.
- Heritage Distilling Firm Tumwater: Tumwater, Wash.
- Heritage Distilling Firm Whiteaker: Eugene, Ore.
- Heritage Distilling Firm fifth Avenue, Eugene, Ore.
Along with elevated state taxes and regulatory burdens, the corporate credited client shifts towards decreased alcohol consumption and various merchandise, legislative failure to equalize taxation of decrease alcohol proof ready-to-drink drinks with wine and beer, and enter from traders and stakeholders in search of to streamline operations to enhance profitability as causes for closing operations.
Heritage Distilling will proceed with contract manufacturing
Heritage mentioned that it’ll give attention to contract manufacturing partnerships, model improvement, direct-to-consumer gross sales, wholesale improvement, and partnerships with Native American tribes by including branded tasting rooms at Tribal Beverage Community places in and close to their casinos.
The spirits firm presently operates Heritage Distilling Firm at Angel of the Winds On line casino Resort in Arlington, Wash.
Heritage plans to open tribal on line casino places
Heritage Distilling Firm’s web site additionally lists a tasting room coming quickly to Mazatzal On line casino of the Tonto Apache Tribe in Payson, Ariz., and at a Ko-Kwel On line casino Resort in Oregon.
Whereas the restructuring will scale back annual revenues by about $3 million a yr, it should additionally scale back annual working bills by about $5 million. It would get rid of $1.1 million in unabsorbed manufacturing overhead prices per yr and supply a internet discount in working capital wants of over $2 million a yr.
The corporate may also get rid of over $2 million in annual curiosity and different bills and scale back legal responsibility by $19.3 million, in response to an October assertion.
Associated: One other common beer model closes eternally, no chapter filed
