Maker of holiday nog expands

A new dairy-grade bottling facility will

allow Sam and Diane Francovich of

Francovich Holiday Nog to significantly

increase bottling capacity and expand distribution

to other states.

Francovich Holiday Nog moved operations

to a 2,500-square-foot facility at 1345

W. Fourth St., also home to Crystal Ice and

Oil. The Francovich family invested $55,000

in improvements that allow the facility to

bottle their heady eggnog blend whenever

they chose, and cold-storage facilities offered

by the longtime west Reno ice company made

for a perfect fit, co-owner Sam Francovich

said.

"All the cooling and refrigeration they

have got right there," he said."It allows us to

control our own destiny because we can bottle

when we want and as much as we want. It

is just a much better situation for us."

The company previously shared bottling

facilities with West-Pack, a bulk-foods packing

plant in Sparks. Francovich said the move

allows for a much higher level of quality control.

"We are a super-clean facility," he said.

"We have got to be just as clean as Model

Dairy."

The new facility also allows the

Francovich family to bottle as much as 3,600

bottles a day, compared to 3,600 bottles a

week at their old location since they could

only bottle once a week.

The move was made with an eye toward

the future as the family hopes to expand its

reach by striking distribution deals across the

country. Currently Francovich Holiday Nog is

distributed by Silver State Liquors primarily

to northern Nevada retailers such as Wal-

Mart, Costco, Ben's Liquors, Smiths, Longs

and several other outlets.

"What we really need is a distributor in

California and one in the Chicago area,"

Francovich said."We need cold-weather climates

eggnog is not big in Los Angeles."