InvestBev funnels $100m into Kentucky Bourbon barrels
Private equity firm InvestBev has entered a partnership with an unnamed ‘leading’ global asset manager that will allow it to acquire Kentucky Bourbon barrels worth up to US$100 million.
The firm said the partnership ‘leverages InvestBev’s position as a force in spirits investing, paired with the asset manager’s capital and structuring expertise’.
InvestBev will seek to acquire Bourbon barrels under five years old and hold them until maturity.
It said this approach aligns with its strategy of ‘identifying attractive assets within the spirits sector and capitalising on long-term appreciation’.
General partner Brian Rosen said: “This partnership and this capital should signal to the broader spirits community the confidence global investors have in the sector, beyond legacy industry players.
“We believe in the strength of the Bourbon market and see this as an opportunity to further support the ecosystem while generating significant value together with our partners.”
The move comes after a series of disappointing news stories for the American whiskey sector, most notably in terms of tariffs from the EU. The category is likely to be affected by Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on US-made spirits, depending on president Donald Trump’s decisions.
Although the 25% tariffs on Canadian products are currently paused until 2 April, when Trump first threatened to introduce them, Canada’s provinces responded by pulling US spirits from shelves.
Earlier this year, Jack Daniel’s owner Brown-Forman cut more than 600 jobs, while this week Green River Distilling reduced its workforce by a quarter.
Bulleit owner Diageo also announced last week that it would temporarily pause production at its whiskey distillery in Lebanon, Kentucky, to support the firm’s productivity goals.
In an interview with The Spirits Business in January, Rosen said “there is no bad year” for Bourbon and shared his belief that the category can bear resilience during economic uncertainty.
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