Bacardi Acquires ANGEL’S ENVY Bourbon
Bermuda-based Bacardi Limited has expanded its portfolio of super-premium spirits with the acquisition of Louisville-based Angel’s Share Brands, its subsidiary, Louisville Distilling Co., and its Angel’s Envy™ brand.
This deal marks the Company’s entry into the bourbon category of the North American whiskey sector.
Bacardi CEO Mike Dolan said, ““We have a clear strategy aligned to meet consumer needs in premium spirits and are building an even stronger portfolio through innovation and acquisition.
“The purchase of Angel’s Share Brands and the Angel’s Envy portfolio further reinforces our commitment to growing the super-premium spirits sector.”
Barry Kabalkin, Vice Chairman of Bacardi, said: “Bacardi has a long history of successful acquisitions of cutting-edge brands. Bacardi looks for the gems of innovation in the spirits world to complement our premium and super-premium brands, and Angel’s Envy is a natural fit for our portfolio.
“We are thrilled to add Angel’s Envy, one of the most exciting brands in the North American whiskey category today, to our highly focused portfolio of iconic brands.”
Angel’s Envy will continue as a standalone operation, meaning the business structure, employee base, production, distribution, commercial and marketing activities will remain unchanged.
Angel’s Envy’s new distillery and brand experience center in downtown Louisville is planned for a 2016 opening and will showcase the great tradition of Kentucky bourbon-making.
Angel’s Envy was created by the late Master Distiller Lincoln Henderson, one of the original pioneers of the premium bourbon and whiskey categories in the U.S. and an inaugural member of the Bourbon Hall of Fame. The brand is hand-blended in small batches of 8 to 12 barrels.
Bacardi Limited Chairman Facundo L. Bacardi, a fifth generation Bacardi family member, said: “Angel’s Envy, like Bacardi, was founded as a family-owned business driven by an entrepreneurial spirit.
“The secrets to crafting Angel’s Envy have been well preserved by three generations of the Henderson family. Bacardi is well recognized for showcasing the unique heritage and origin of our brands, so I’m thrilled that the Henderson family, under the stewardship of Global Brand Ambassador Wes Henderson, will continue to be directly involved with the Angel’s Envy brand.”
Terms of the transaction, closed on March 27, were not disclosed.
