East Coast Crush & Co-Pack (EC3) is a full-service custom wine and beverage production facility. Located in Naples, New York, EC3 is ideally positioned as a “Pack in Market” provider with same-day access to service the Eastern United States (East of the Mississippi and Southern Canada).

The 3-million gallon facility (a former Constellation Brands Plant/Widmer Wine Cellars) includes state-of-the-art pressing, juice production, and bottling facilities that can accommodate medium to large size domestic and international wine brands. Bulk flexitank receipt for production, packaging, storage, and shipping is one of EC3’s demonstrated areas of expertise. Packaging capabilities include 750ml and 1.5L glass, 187ml PET, 1.5L and 3.0L pouches and Bag-In-Box (BIB). Additionally, beverage kegging and canning are offered. Beverage specialties include custom wine blends, carbonated beverages, cider, and malt-based production.

EC3 also keeps an extensive bulk wine inventory on hand for direct sale or conversion into customer designed products. Other services include warehousing, dry goods management, and logistical support. EC3 is co-located with Hazlitt’s Red Cat Cellars. The Hazlitt family purchased the complex in 2010 in order to gain full control over the production of their growing family of brands.

The massive facility had significant excess capacity and the idea for EC3 was born out of concepts for better utilizing that excess capacity. Since the purchase in 2010, the investment in facilities and equipment is well above $5M. The annual production volume now exceeds half a million cases and still only consumes a relatively small portion of the total capacity of the facility.

Numerous quality control measures are in place to ensure that the customers’ products meet or exceed their expectations. An onsite laboratory provides rapid results during production runs upon receipt of flexitanks and throughout fermentation. Standardized procedures and training are employed for consistent results every time. EC3 offers Velcorin® dosing for lower ABV products or as the added peace of mind.

Their award-winning winemaking staff brings a combination of expertise in large batch native grape production, the making of high-end vinifera wines and hard ciders. With over 50 years of combined experience, our team can create, or replicate nearly any taste profile. Four different production lines offer several choices of package size to suit most production volumes. Their large capacity line can produce over 5,000 cases per day. Keg washing and filling are offered for leased stainless kegs as well as fully recyclable versions such as Petainer and Key kegs. Daily production for kegs can approach 800 units.

The location of the facility is in close proximity to the East Coast’s largest metropolitan centers such as Boston, M.A., New York City, N.Y., Philadelphia, P.A., Washington, D.C. and Charlotte, N.C. These locations represent some of the largest adult beverage markets in the country. The team at EC3 is routinely receiving Flexitanks from key wine regions all over the world. Their customers trust them to produce their wines and package them to the highest, exacting standards. Shipping bulk and packing in a market can be a significant cost saver over shipping finished goods.