Agave 'tequila' distillery goes to auction

Discussing the liquid assets: (L-R) Tim Maughan of Francis Thompson and Aspden Attorneys and ClareMart Auction Group Managing Director Andrew Koch.

According to CEO, Jonathan Smiedt, ClareMart Auction Group was instructed by joint liquidators, Bryan Shaw of Progressive Administration and Raymond Fenner to conduct the sale of Agave Distillers through a public tender. This tender will seek offers on the fixed property as well as the plant and equipment with interest expected to come from across the globe.

The Agave Distillers production plant was recently closed down after a successful application by creditors for its liquidation. It is one of the few distillers, outside the borders of Mexico, who manufacture a "tequila-styled" alcoholic drink from the Agave plant, a complex but potentially profitable enterprise.

Fully equipped

Located on the national highway between Cape Town and Johannesburg, just outside Graaff Reinet in the Eastern Cape, the distillery features a state-of-the-art distillation, bottling and packaging plant capable of producing large quantities of product on a daily basis.

The facility incorporates a large factory, office and warehouse complex located on a 20 hectare site close to the town, and is situated within an area where the Agave plant thrives and is grown by local farmers, guaranteeing an existing skilled labour force.

The industrial unit is comprised of a high volume bottling plant, laboratories, copper/steel distilling plants, high capacity stainless steel storage tanks and all ancillary equipment required for this manufacturing process.

While interest has already been expressed from within the liquor industry and from other distillers, much of the equipment - most of which was supplied and engineered by a French company specialising in such distillery hardware - can be applied to other industries and processes. The stainless steel equipment as well as the distillation plant itself can be used for a number of purposes in the general food and beverage industry.

Emergence of Agave

It was during the peak of tequila's international popularity, that a virus in Mexico began damaging the agave species used in producing the drink, causing a huge price increase. This disaster acted as the catalyst to the development of the Agave Distilleries, as alternative supply sources for this product became sought after.

This potent alcoholic beverage is currently being marketed as 'Agava' due to the fact that only agave products (tequila) produced within Mexico may be termed 'tequila'.

The Agave Distillery has been extremely successful during its time of operation; its export markets have included America, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Barbados and even Mexico. The company seemed set to conquer the world when its director Jan Terblanche passed away in the beginning of this year, ultimately resulting in the liquidation of this extraordinary site. However, according to news reports the previous owners, McLachlan Family Trust, have left the property with “a pristine production facility”, allowing future investors to embrace this once in a lifetime opportunity.

The public tender process will close on Tuesday 18 November 2008. Claremart Auction Group may be contacted on (021) 425 8822 for further particulars and tender documentation.