Home » Bluegrass Bottling invests $6.25 million in new bottling facility in Lancaster

Bluegrass Bottling invests $6.25 million in new bottling facility in Lancaster

LANCASTER, Ky. — Bluegrass Bottling LLC, a Kentucky-based, woman-owned business, announced it will construct a new bottling facility in Lancaster with a $6.25 million investment that will create 27 full-time jobs for Kentucky residents.

Bluegrass Bottling operates in Garrard and Lincoln counties, currently employing 14 people in the Commonwealth. Company leaders will construct a new 50,000-square-foot bottling facility on a 98-acre site at 51 Poor Ridge Pike in Lancaster, where the company will operate under the name Poor Ridge Distillery.

The project also will more than double the company’s storage space to a total of 49,000 square feet. Bluegrass Bottling will retain its employment base from its current bottling facility in neighboring Lincoln County, where the company will maintain a distribution presence. Construction is expected to begin next month with completion slated for March 2023.

“We could not be more excited and proud to be a part of Kentucky’s bourbon industry,” said Lisa Strevels, owner of Bluegrass Bottling. “This investment will be vital to our company’s continued growth in the commonwealth, and we look forward to expanding our presence in Lancaster.”

Established in 2020, Bluegrass Bottling’s services include blending, proofing, brand development, labeling, private labeling, specialized packaging and designing of spirits brands. The company provides resources that allow distilleries, small-craft distillers and bourbon enthusiasts to market their products and reach their full potential.

Bluegrass Bottling’s investment builds on recent bourbon and spirits growth across Kentucky. Since the start of the Beshear administration, the commonwealth’s spirits industry has announced more than 50 new location or expansion projects totaling over $1.1 billion in planned investments and creating more than 900 announced full-time jobs. Currently, approximately 60 spirits facilities directly employ more than 5,300 people.

Kentucky’s bourbon sector is a nearly $9 billion signature industry, generating more than 22,500 jobs with an annual payroll exceeding $1.23 billion. Gov. Beshear also worked with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to remove harmful bourbon tariffs on trade with the United Kingdom and European Union, ensuring continuing strength in the export market.

To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) in July preliminarily approved a 15-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $405,000 in tax incentives based on the company’s investment of $6.25 million and annual targets of:

  • Creation and maintenance of 27 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 15 years; and
  • Paying an average hourly wage of $23 including benefits across those jobs.

By meeting its annual targets over the agreement term, the company can be eligible to keep a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company may claim eligible incentives against its income tax liability and/or wage assessments.

In addition, the company can receive resources from Kentucky’s workforce service providers. These include no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job-training incentives.

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