South Jersey’s Flying Fish Brewing Co. files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

South Jersey craft beer stalwart Flying Fish Brewing Co. has filed for bankruptcy protection just months after a deal fell through that would have seen the brand sold to Cape May Brewing Co.

The Somerdale-based Flying Fish listed $1.3 million in assets and $9.3 million in liabilities in its Chapter 11 petition, which was filed Thursday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey. The company is owned by Elk Lake Capital, a capital investment firm in Scranton that acquired Flying Fish in 2016.

Elk Lake Capital is also listed in the bankruptcy filing as Flying Fish’s biggest creditor, with unsecured claims of about $4.2 million. Celtic Capital Corp., a financial services firm in Calabasas, Calif., has nearly $4.1 million in unsecured claims with Flying Fish, according to the filing.

Overall, the company listed $1.3 million in assets, about $500,000 coming from brewing machinery and equipment. It claimed more than $9.2 million in liabilities.

The company’s bankruptcy petition comes amid falling gross revenue, according to the filing. In 2023, Flying Fish’s gross revenue totaled about $3.1 million, a 23% decrease from its 2022 total of nearly $4 million. Revenue was slightly higher in 2021 at about $4.1 million.

The petition for bankruptcy protection also comes several months after a deal with Cape May Brewing Co. failed to come to fruition. Cape May Brewing announced in April that it would acquire Flying Fish, with co-owner Ryan Krill telling The Inquirer that “the brand and legacy of Flying Fish will continue.” Krill declined to comment on how much Cape May Brewing was set to pay for Flying Fish’s assets, including its Somerdale production facility.

By June, the deal was off the table. That month, Cape May Brewing president Frank Stempin told the Press of Atlantic City that the company backed away from the deal “after extensive analysis during the diligence phase.”

Bankruptcy court filings did not indicate how the move would impact the brewery’s production or presence. The company did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Founded as a “virtual brewery” by Gene Muller in 1995, Flying Fish is considered among the oldest operating craft breweries in New Jersey. It opened a brewery and taproom in Cherry Hill in 1996, and moved operations to Somerdale in 2012. In 2022, it reportedly produced about 16,000 barrels of beer.