The Times reported on Saturday that the “collapsed” Irish whiskey brand, Waterford, might have a second chance. Tennessee Distilling, an American contract distiller, is interested in purchasing Waterford for €6 million ($6.9 million). News of Waterford going under receivership made headlines in November 2024.
For the potential acquisition, Tennessee Distilling will assume ownership of the facilities — a distillery situated on an old Diageo brewery site. The company additionally will acquire the existing bottled whiskey, and the intellectual property, according to The Times. The outlet reports that Tennessee Distilling’s aim is to invest in distilling in Ireland, which seems like a savvy move given the number of distilleries in the country that have either paused or halted production entirely.
The Times reported that if the sale should occur, there will be almost seven million liters of juice up for sale.
Whisky Magazine sat down with Waterford Distillery’s CEO and Founder, Mark Reynier. Reynier is a whiskey industry veteran, and he brought back the Bruichladdich distillery on Islay. Understandably, Reynier took the news of the receivership quite hard, and claimed that post-Pandemic challenges contributed to the distillery’s collapse.
“Rising energy costs, inflation, and interest rate hikes didn’t just hit consumers; they hit us,” Reynier said, according to Whisky Magazine. “Interest payments became crippling. Our sales weren’t covering them. And in a young brand, you’re always playing catch-up — you don’t have the reserves of an established player.”
Yet despite feelings of “ignominy” and “humiliation,” Reynier vowed that he would do his “utmost to rescue Waterford.” It appears he kept his word with the potential acquisition. Apparently, a number of buyers were interested in acquiring Waterford, but the deal with Tennessee Distilling appears to be the one that’s gone the furthest.
Given global economic uncertainty, inflation and tariffs, only time will tell if the deal will fully come to fruition.
About Waterford Whiskey’s Potential Buyer
The Tennessee Distilling Group shares on its LinkedIn that it specializes in American Bourbon, Rye, Corn and of course, Tennessee Whiskey. The brand does contract distilling, storage and bottling within its over 800,000 square foot warehouse.
According to The Times, Tennessee Distilling was founded by Tennessee legislator Mike Williams. Williams made it his mission to increase the number of counties to distill the whiskey.
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