Constellation Brands buys Carlos Santana’s Casa Noble Tequila

Constellation Brands is to acquire Carlos Santana’s Casa Noble, its first Tequila brand, for an undisclosed sum.

Casa Noble Tequila, formerly part-owned by musician Carlos Santana, will become Constellation’s first super-premium spirit and first Tequila

The acquisition, which is expected to complete in September this year, will give Constellation a footprint in the rising super-premium Tequila category, which is grew by 10% in the US in 2013.

According to Constellation, Casa Noble Tequila posts “consistent, double-diit growth”.

Casa Noble, which is produced from organic blue agave grown in the hills of Jalisco, Mexico, joins Black Velvet Canadian whisky and Svedka vodka in Constellation’s portfolio.

Rob Sands, CEO of Constellation Brands, said: “I’m excited for the opportunity to integrate Casa Noble Tequila into our existing portfolio. As the first super-premium spirits brand we’ll add to our portfolio, Casa Noble is a natural fit.

“It complements our successful Mexican beer brands and we intend to leverage our existing strong routes-to-market, as well as our marketing expertise and deep knowledge of the Hispanic consumer.”

Casa Noble has been produced since the 1700s, and is currently co-owned by Mexican musician Santana – who bought a stake in 2011 – along with David Ravandi, Carlos Hernandez and Jose Hermosillo with Casa Noble Holdings.

Hermosillo will join the Constellation team to lead the development of the brand as brand manager and ambassador.

“As a founding partner of Casa Noble, I’m looking forward to joining forces with Constellation Brands, a company with such a strong reputation for driving growth, to build this brand to its highest potential,” he said.

Casa Noble is available in four varieties: a blanco Crystal Tequila, Reposado, Anejo and Single Barrel bottlings.