Killarney Brewing and Distillery campus up for sale after sudden closure
The Killarney Brewing and Distilling company in Fossa, Killarney County Kerry.
The building that housed the recently shut Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company has been placed on the market.
The company ceased operations in July this year, resulting in the loss of 54 jobs and the appointment of a liquidator. The brewery had been trading since 2015, after garnering strong interest from both local and Irish-American investors.
The 5,760 sq m premises at Kilakee, Fossa stands on a site of 4.2 acres, which opened in late 2022.
The property is for sale via joint agents Cushman & Wakefield and Tom Spillane & Co, guiding in excess of €5,500,000 for the brewery on behalf of Michael O’Regan and Declan McDonald, who are receivers at PwC.
At the heart of the campus is the brewery and distillery, including a fully fitted bar and restaurant with seating capacity for approximately 260 guests.
The property also features a visitor centre, a café space, a 250-person gala event space, a rooftop terrace and a gift shop, with the property being marketed as a fully immersive destination for both tourists and locals.
The premises also include four warehouse units to the rear, with 9m eaves, each extending to approximately 5,000 sq ft, which the selling agent says offers alternative revenue streams through the separate letting of the warehouses. It also features car and coach parking for over 130 vehicles with good circulation space.
"This facility is a very significant development, the investment into which can be seen throughout the property," said the agents.
"The finishes are of high specifications and the building was developed as a key tourism hub and entertainment centre for the region."
Once considered one of Ireland’s most ambitious independent drinks ventures, the Killarney Brewing and Distilling Company had set out to create something new and sellable to the US market, helped by a pool of both local and international investors.
But a challenging few years, underpinned by the pandemic and significant overspends, led to a pile-up of debts that could not be paid, ultimately resulting in the collapse of the multimillion-euro enterprise.
At the end of 2024, the company’s cumulative trading losses had grown to almost €2m, with the company recording liabilities in excess of assets of €3.27m at the end of last year, which made it balance sheet insolvent.
In its last public statement, the company said: “Like many in the drinks manufacturing industry, KBD has faced significant and sustained challenges in recent years, stemming from the lasting effects of the pandemic, delays in opening our state-of-the-art distillery in Fossa, global supply chain disruptions, rising input costs, and ongoing geopolitical and trading pressures.
“More recently, high tariffs on Irish whiskey exports to the US and wider economic uncertainty have further impacted the business.
“We remain proud of what we’ve built together and the craft, care, and creativity that defined our journey.”
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