LANCASTER, Ohio (WCMH) — A central Ohio brewery that was on the market for more than $6 million and then for sale in a foreclosure auction has been acquired by a husband and wife who held their wedding at the brewery.
Austin and Taylor Caulk cast the winning bid on March 25 of $2,400,600 to purchase Rockmill Brewery at 5705 Lithopolis Road NW in Lancaster, according to the 12-acre property’s listing on Auction Ohio’s site. The bid came just above the minimum asking price of $2.4 million, but far from the Fairfield County Common Pleas Court’s appraisal of $3.6 million.
“If you’ve ever sat at the bar and grabbed a beer, chances are you’ve heard about the long process of owning Rockmill,” said the couple, who married at the brewery in 2023, when announcing the acquisition on social media. “We owe a massive thank you to each one of you for your unwavering support throughout this journey.”
The Caulks’ multi-million dollar purchase includes the brewery’s main operations, with five buildings totaling more than 9,000 square feet home to a taproom, an event space, a chapel, a pond and picnic grounds.
A neighboring site home to a 5,080-square-foot, two-story house built in 1900 and remodeled in 1981 is also owned by the couple and has been their residence even before they cast the winning bid. The home includes three bedrooms, four full bathrooms, three half bathrooms, three fireplaces and a three-car detached garage.
Rockmill’s foreclosure auction had come after founder Matthew Barbee attempted to sell the brewery for $6.75 million in 2022, though a deal was never reached. Barbee, who now lives in San Juan, Puerto Rico, bestowed the brewery’s day-to-day operations to the Caulks last year.
Barbee launched the brewery in 2010 on his mother’s more than 23-acre farm and expanded in 2016 with the opening of Rockmill Tavern in Columbus’ Brewery District. However, after the COVID-19 pandemic fizzled Barbee’s momentum, the tavern closed in 2022 and the Lancaster brewery’s patrons dwindled.
The Caulks were hiking last year in Lancaster when the couple stopped at Rockmill for a beer. Columbus Monthly reported the pair took a walk to the property’s chapel where Austin proposed to Taylor, leading them to inquire with Barbee about getting married at the site.
The couple soon became interested in also purchasing Rockmill from Barbee, though a sale wasn’t able to go through at the time. Now, the brewery is open 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday, 2 to 9 p.m. Friday, noon to 9 p.m. Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday.
Rockmill is one of several central Ohio breweries facing turmoil since the pandemic, including 1487 Brewery that permanently closed in February after its former chief operating officer pleaded guilty to stealing more than $200,000 from the company. Smokehouse Brewing Company in Grandview Heights closed in January after 25 years of business.
