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Brown-Forman completes BenRiach takeover

Brown-Forman has completed its £281 million (US$405m) acquisition of The BenRiach Distillery Company and its three Scotch whisky brands.

The BenRiach Distillery is now under the ownership of US group Brown-Forman

The US group has now assumed ownership of The GlenDronach, BenRiach, and Glenglassaugh single malt brands, along with their trademarks, three malt distilleries, a bottling plant and BenRiach’s headquarters in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Brown-Forman reached a “definitive agreement” to acquire the independent Benriach Distillery Company in April this year. BenRiach, which has a workforce of 165 people, will now operate as a subsidiary of Brown-Forman.

“With this acquisition, Brown-Forman re-enters one of the spirits industry’s most exciting and consistent growth segments, single salt Scotch whisky,” said Brown-Forman CEO Paul Varga.

“The GlenDronach, BenRiach, and Glenglassaugh single malt brands are among the finest single malts in the world and we look forward to continue building them around the globe.”

Brown-Forman was previously a minority shareholder in single malt brand Glenmorangie and marketed the Scotch in the US and Canada from 1992 to 2005, and in Continental Europe and certain Asian markets from 2000 to 2005. 

The firm offloaded its interest as part of Glenmorangie plc’s sale to Möet Hennessy in 2005 and has not owned a single malt Scotch brand since.

In June 2015, the group made its first move into the fast-growing Irish whiskey segment with the acquisition of Slane Castle Irish Whiskey for US$50m and took over work building the distillery on the historic Slane Castle Estate in County Meath, Ireland.

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