News Briefs for November 12, 2013
November 12, 2013•Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine has a new investor, as private investment firm Centerview Capital has taken a significant equity position in the distiller. Ole Smoky, whose moonshines retail at around $25 a 750-ml. bottle, had volume of 85,000 cases in 2012 and is projecting a jump to about 250,000 cases this year. The company recently quadrupled its bottling capacity with the addition of a new 20,000-square foot facility. Centerview’s other consumer investments include The Nielsen Company, Del Monte Foods and Richelieu Foods.
•California’s The Calling wine brand, a joint venture between Peter Deutsch and CBS sportscaster Jim Nantz, is donating 20% of all profits of online sales for the month of November to the Nantz National Alzheimer Center in Houston, where Nantz’s father was treated for Alzheimer’s before passing away in 2008. The initiative dovetails with Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease, which is now the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States. The Calling, which debuted last year, specializes in upscale Sonoma Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon.
•Russia’s RSG Trading is launching its super-premium Russian Diamond vodka brand in the U.S. Handled by DUN Beverage Partners, Russian Diamond ($24.99 a 750-ml.) is hitting New Jersey (distributed by Allied Beverage) and several New England states (distributed by M.S. Walker) this fall ahead of a national rollout next spring. Targeted toward young professional consumers, the Russian import is presented in a diamond-cut package with an Italian velvet label featuring textured metallic lettering.
•Jewelry designer David Yurman has created a limited-edition bottle stopper for Patrón Añejo Tequila to celebrate the upcoming holiday season. Die-cast in solid metal and electroplated in gun metal and 24K gold, the bottle stopper features a two-toned sword inscribed with metal carvings inspired by those depicted on 18th century Japanese Samurai swords. Packaged in a special-edition gift box, the Yurman-Patrón collaboration is rolling out at select retailers around the U.S. at a suggested price of $59.99.
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