Brewery, Winery and Distillery Feasibility Study in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metro Area

Beverage makers in the Baltimore area

Breweries, wineries and distilleries make up one class, which sits at 14 of 39 in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, and the area is 33 of 443 nationally. The area approved 28 loans between FY2017 and FY2026, $13.5 million in gross dollars together. The location quotient of 0.88x puts the class somewhat under its national weight, while the median loan of $290,000 is 1.00x the national median: a loan of typical size here is the size of a typical loan anywhere.

All 7(a), no brands, one dominant holder

All 28 loans fall under the 7(a) program, and the 504 program counts 0. The franchise share is 0.00%. Loans between $93,750 and $406,250 make up the middle half, so most projects are equipment and fit-out packages, not large plant. Baltimore city, MD records 10 loans and Baltimore County, MD records 8. Of the 7(a) holders, Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company is the standout at 17 loans and $3.5 million.

FY2017 shows 10 loans and $2.6 million, the busiest year by loan count, and FY2019 shows 5 loans and $1.1 million. Other years are not listed, as counts that small cannot be published, and unlisted is not the same as empty. No rate for cancelled approvals or charge-offs appears, because Loan Analytics will not compute such a rate on fewer than 30 loans.

Limits, and what a Baltimore-area brewery study has to test

Whether a borrower brews, ferments or distils is all the code reveals; it does not say whether the business also keeps a taproom, a tasting room or a venue for events, so a loan in this record may fund a production plant, a tasting venue or both. Wineries are folded in with breweries and distilleries. Revenue should be split by the study into wholesale, retail and events, test the cost of tanks, stills or brewing equipment against a median near $290,000, and confirm the licensing and zoning that each use needs. It should show the debt payment still covered in a lean season, and say what the equipment would fetch if sold. The Baltimore area is assembled from the counties, on the July 2023 list, in which financed sites lie.