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Terressentia Corporation, a spirits producer in N. Charleston, SC and owner/operator of the O.Z. Tyler Distillery in Owensboro, KY, has closed on new capital funding of $12,250,000 in preferred equity and a new term loan of $13,250,000. Proceeds will be used to retire $17 million in convertible debt that the company raised to purchase and renovate the O.Z. Tyler Distillery and provide over $7,000,000 in additional working capital.
In 2014, Terressentia purchased the 26-acre former Charles Medley Distillery in Owensboro, KY. After extensive renovations, the O.Z. Tyler Distillery—named for the co-inventor of the company’s patented TerrePURE technology—opened in September 2016. The Distillery is now producing Bourbon and Rye Whiskey for the rapidly growing brown spirits markets and is filling barrels with O.Z. Tyler Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey that will be released later this year. The Distillery currently has 25 employees.
Terressentia Corporation’s base of operations is a 37,500-square foot plant in Palmetto Commerce Parkway in North Charleston, SC. The plant has a staff of 42. In this facility, the company applies its proprietary TerrePURE process to a wide variety of distilled and flavored distilled spirits (Bourbon, Gin, Vodka, Rum, other Whiskies, etc.) for the private label, private brand, and bulk spirits markets.
Terressentia CEO Earl Hewlette said, “This new round of capital enables us to reduce our debt by more than $6 million and provides us with additional working capital to continue to grow our business. We are very pleased with the strong demand for Bourbon. We are currently producing 25,000 Bourbon barrels per year and have already sold or received commitments for all our 2017 production. The demand we are seeing from our new and existing customers has caused us to begin an expansion to increase our annual capacity to 75,000 barrels by this summer.”
