Laden...
If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view.
Sign up for Shanken News Daily | Forward to a Colleague | Visit ShankenNewsDaily.com
Visit: WineSpectator.com | CigarAficionado.com | WhiskyAdvocate.com | Market Watch | Impact Newsletter | Impact Databank
Follow Shanken News Daily on: Twitter Facebook
Continuing its run of aggressive dealmaking, Constellation Brands has sold its Canadian wine business to the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan for C$1.03 billion ($784m), while also acquiring five upscale wine brands from Washington-based Charles Smith Wines for $120 million.
The Charles Smith wines include Kung Fu Girl Riesling, Velvet Devil Merlot, Boom Boom! Syrah, Eve Chardonnay and Chateau Smith Cabernet Sauvignon. Constellation says the deal will solidify its position as the second-largest supplier of Washington state wines (after Ste. Michelle Wine Estates). Kung Fu Girl, twice named to Wine Spectator’s Top 100 list, is among the leading Riesling brands in Nielsen channels, with sales up 45% over the past year. Boom Boom! Syrah is an ultra-premium Syrah that has advanced by over 50% in the same time period, while Velvet Devil is a super-premium standout in Washington’s Merlot segment. The deal doesn’t include Charles Smith’s K Vintners, Wines of Substance, ViNO, Casa Smith, SIXTO, B. Leighton and Charles & Charles brands.
Meanwhile, Constellation says the move to divest its Canadian wine business—acquired via its $1.3 billion purchase of Vincor in 2006—furthers its strategy of focusing on “premium, high-margin, and high-growth” wine labels. That transaction, expected to close by the year-end, includes the Jackson-Triggs and Inniskillin brands, as well as wineries, vineyards, Wine Rack retail stores and other holdings. Constellation will retain its Black Velvet Canadian whisky brand and related production facility in Lethbridge, Alberta.
In another, smaller deal, Constellation has also revealed that it recently took a minority stake in Kentucky’s Bardstown Bourbon Co., one of the largest of the new crop of craft whiskey players. That purchase complements the company’s acquisition of Utah’s High West, which SND reported exclusively on October 4.
As part of its renewal of relations with Cuba, the U.S. government has lifted restrictions on the dollar value of Cuban rum and cigars allowed to be brought back to the U.S. by travelers returning from other countries, including Cuba. Two years ago, along with other sweeping changes to U.S.-Cuban relations, the government began allowing travelers to return to the U.S. with $100 worth of Cuban rum and cigars. The new policy, announced by the Obama administration Friday, is intended “to further engage and empower the Cuban people and promote political, social, and economic reform in Cuba,” according to a statement from the Treasury Department. “In all cases, the Cuban-origin goods must be imported for personal use, and normal limits on duty and tax exemptions will apply.”
•Angel’s Envy, part of the Bacardi portfolio, is introducing a limited edition cask strength whiskey finished in Port barrels to select markets. The brand’s 2016 Cask Strength edition (62.3% abv) retails at about $180 a 750-ml. bottle and is available in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Washington D.C. Previous Angel’s Envy cask strength limited editions have sold out quickly. Angel’s Envy producer Louisville Distilling Company is currently building a new distillery and visitor center in downtown Louisville, which is slated to open this fall.
•Diageo is extending its upscale Cîroc brand with a new mango-flavored vodka. Mango joins Pineapple, Peach, Amaretto, Red Berry and Coconut expressions in the brand’s flavor stable. After falling 19% in the U.S. last year to 1.6 million cases due to Diageo’s decision to reduce shipments of new products, Cîroc increased its sales by 95% in the first six months of this year.
•Quintessential Brands, the company formed by former Campari CEO Enzo Visone and former investment banker Warren Scott in 2011, recently launched a North American unit and is backing four of its core offerings with a multimillion-dollar marketing initiative. Greenall’s Gin ($18 a 750-ml.), Opihr Gin ($29), The Dubliner Irish Whiskey ($28) and The Dubliner Honeycomb Liqueur ($28) are being reintroduced in select U.S. markets this holiday season, with marketing activity slated to ramp up leading into 2017. Quintessential works in partnership with importer and distributor Prestige Wine & Spirits in the U.S. The company is not to be confused with wine importer and marketer Quintessential Wines, based in Napa.
Get the latest edition of Shanken's Impact Newsletter, providing in-depth news and research about the beverage alcohol industry.
Subscribe today and you'll receive every issue in both print and digital format.
For a complete listing of M. Shanken Communications events or to register, click here.
Got a story idea, or general comments about this newsletter?
Contact our editors David Fleming, Peter Zwiebach, and Daniel Marsteller at:
shankennewsdaily@mshanken.com
Share this newsletter via: Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Twitter
For advertising information, contact newsletteradvertising@mshanken.com
Unsubscribe | Forward to a Friend | Manage your newsletter subscription
Copyright 2016 M. Shanken Communications, Inc.
825 Eighth Avenue, 33rd Floor New York NY 10019
Laden...
Laden...
© 2025
