Maryland has awarded $150,000 to help Sangfroid Distilling convert a former bank in Takoma Park into a distillery and tasting room. The grant is intended to support larger equipment purchases, loan payments and employee wages, according to the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.
Public money supports a private expansion
The grant comes through Maryland’s National Capital Strategic Economic Development Fund, which backs commercial and residential projects in targeted revitalization areas, according to the department’s program description. Takoma Park mayor Talisha Searcy attended the presentation and credited the project with helping renew the city’s business district, as reported by Bethesda Magazine.
A larger home for Sangfroid
Sangfroid plans to operate in the former Bank of America branch building that closed in 2021. Bethesda Magazine reported the company bought the property for $1.75 million in August 2024; it gives the address as 6905 Carroll Avenue, while WhatNow DC gives it as 6950 Carroll Avenue. The former bank is expected to provide about 5,000 square feet, compared with roughly 1,000 square feet at Sangfroid’s Hyattsville facility, where production had reached its limit, WhatNow DC reported.
A snapshot of Maryland’s distillery sector
The Maryland Alcohol and Tobacco Commission’s FY2022 annual report listed 29 distillery off-site permits, generating $11,450 in associated revenue. Separately, the state’s Alcohol Manufacturing Promotion Fund is authorized to support the creation and expansion of breweries, distilleries and wineries, according to the Maryland Department of Commerce’s 2025 commission report. That policy context helps explain the significance of a small producer moving into a larger facility: Sangfroid’s expansion is part of a sector that state programs explicitly support, even though the available permit figure is only a single-year snapshot.
Co-owned by brothers-in-law Jeff Harner and Nate Groenendyk, Sangfroid has spent four to five years seeking more space. The company produces fruit brandies, rye whiskey and Dutch-style gin, and expects the expanded operation to accommodate products including apricot brandy, coffee liqueur, bottled Negroni cocktails and apple, pear, cherry and plum brandies, according to WhatNow DC and Bethesda Magazine.
Preserving the former bank
The 1927 building is a Beaux Arts structure with surviving classical archways, cast-iron grates and ceiling plaster moldings, according to historic-preservation findings cited by Bethesda Magazine. Sangfroid’s renovation also includes an addition for grain milling and fruit processing.
Montgomery County issued a commercial renovation permit valued at $642,722 for the property in January 2025, The MoCo Show reported. Plumbing, electrical and structural work still requires additional permits. Bethesda Magazine reported that the project is expected to be completed in time for Sangfroid to open its distillery and tasting room this winter.
