Distillery closes, files for bankruptcy

A 10-year-old distillery filed for bankruptcy last week.

Monument-based Lee Spirits Co. Inc. said in its Chapter 11 filing that it owes $1.3 million and has assets of $616,552. The company operated a distillery in Monument and a tasting room in Colorado Springs.

A few days before filing for Chapter 11 protection, which allows a business to restructure and keep operating while paying creditors over time, Lee Spirits Co. announced it was ceasing operations and closing its taproom.

“Despite our best efforts, the prolonged impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the everchanging industry landscape presented challenges we simply couldn’t overcome,” the company’s website reads.

Co-founder Ian Lee did not respond to requests for comment.

The business reported $93,000 in revenue from Jan. 1 to the March 8 filing date. Revenue dropped roughly $165,000 from 2022 to 2023, with $997,221 in revenue reported in 2022 and $832,035 in 2023.

According to the bankruptcy filings, Lee Spirits owes $126,299 in rent for its tasting room space and $53,326 in rent for its

Monument distillery.

The business listed its largest creditor as Neil Kalton, owed $250,266 for loans.

Founded by Nick and Ian Lee in 2013, Lee Spirits Co. made liqueur, gin and canned cocktails. Offering included a gin fuego (a dry gin infused with peppers and spices) and a forbidden fruit liqueur. The duo opened the tasting room, Brooklyn’s on Boulder Street, in 2016.

In 2021, the group announced it was acquired by Sonder Libations, a holding company formed by Kevin Selvy, founder of Crazy Mountain Brewing Co. in Denver.

Selvy told Businessden this week that Sonder was formed to manage Lee Spirits’ planned capital raises, but that never materialized.

Selvy said he no longer works with the distiller and has no stake in the company.

Of its $616,000 in assets, nearly $98,000 are from equipment and $10,000 from its various bottles, products and ingredients, according to the filings. The company said the bulk of its assets — $477,742 — is a net operating loss from 2021 it could deduct on future federal taxes.

Keri L. Riley Kutner Brinen Dickey Riley PC is representing the company in bankruptcy proceedings.