Valparaiso distillery project nearing completion
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A $40 million effort to breathe new life into a former windshield wiper factory in Valparaiso is almost finished. Our partners at The Times of Northwest Indiana report Michigan-based Journeyman Distillery plans to open The American Factory campus next month.
The 140,000-square-foot campus sits on the former ANCO factory at Campbell and Brown streets, and will feature a distillery, brewery, multiple restaurants and three banquet halls for special events.
The project is five years in the making, and Journeyman plans to host a ribbon-cutting ceremony in mid-October that will kick off a two-day public celebration.
Co-founder Bill Welter told the publication he wanted to preserve the factory’s heritage, including restoring the original windows and saving and repurposing old bricks. The distillery is also working to get the property listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The distillery will feature some of the favorite spirits from Journeyman’s original location in Three Oaks, Michigan, but will also make its own unique spirits. A planned craft brewery will also create its own variety of beers.
The first restaurant on the campus will be the Union Hall, which will feature American cuisine, but plans are in the works for a steakhouse and pizza restaurant.
Plans are also in the works to host a variety of special events in the campus’ three banquet halls that will be able to host a total of 750 people.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Oct. 14. The public celebration will take place from 12-4 p.m. on the 14th and 12-7 p.m. on Oct. 15.
The event will be free to attend, but Journeyman will offer a $60 ticket to cover spirit tastings, six drink tickets and six food-tasting station tickets. You can learn more about the event by clicking here.