Governor Gretchen Whitmer joined the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) to announce that Traverse City Whiskey is expanding in Traverse City with support from the Michigan Strategic Fund.
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The project is expected to generate a total capital investment of approximately $20 million and create nearly 100 jobs, supported by a $750,000 Michigan Business Development Program performance-based grant.
Michigan was chosen for the project over a competing site in Michigan City, Indiana.
TCWC began operating in 2012, when it established its first distillery and bottling plant in downtown Traverse City and produced straight bourbon and innovative cherry whiskey that have become top selling craft whiskeys statewide.
At its current facility in Traverse City, the company operates the Stillhouse tasting room that has become a popular destination for tens of thousands of area residents and visitors each year.
In 2018, TCWC introduced its premium cocktail cherries which have grown to be the leading premium cocktail cherry nationally, sold in all fifty states. In 2019, it opened its first tasting room in Metro Detroit: The Outpost in Ferndale. TCWC currently employs 45 Michigan residents.
TCWC has purchased and has begun to repurpose the abandoned Cherry Growers Co-Op cherry processing facility in Traverse City where it will accommodate every step in the production process and meet increasing demand for its products.
The first-of-its-kind facility in Michigan will also allow TCWC to offer support to other craft whiskey distillers that are in need of capacity for their own growing brands.
It will also include a state-of-the-art traditional rackhouse, dedicated processing and packaging spaces, administrative offices and a visitor center and tasting room, as well as spectacular indoor and outdoor hospitality spaces.
Elmwood Township has offered a property tax abatement in support of the project, and plans to offer staff time in support of the project.
Once the facility nears completion, information on careers with TCWC will be available. ■