Milestone Brands LLC, the premium spirits company based in Austin, Texas, said it acquired Victoria Distillers Inc (“VDI”), one of the oldest artisan distilleries in Canada and the producer of Empress 1908 Gin, and Azzurre Spirits Corp., the U.S. importer of Empress 1908 Gin.
Since its launch in 2017, Empress 1908 Gin has grown to more than 200,000 cases globally while achieving +100% growth in calendar year 2021. Empress 1908 Gin is the #1 super premium gin in Canada and the #2 super premium gin in the United States.
As part of the transaction, Milestone Brands has acquired the distillery for Empress 1908 Gin in Victoria, Canada as well as the new packaging facility opened in February in Vancouver, Canada.
“We are excited to add Empress 1908 Gin to our Milestone Brands family of brands,” stated Eric Dopkins, CEO and Founder of Milestone Brands LLC, “The Victoria Distillers team as well as the Azzurre Spirits team in the U.S. have truly built a world class brand in Empress 1908 Gin…from the liquid, packaging, name, quality and overall marketing of such a differentiated innovation in the super spirits category”.
Milestone Brands, LLC will retain the entire Victoria Distillers Team as well as the U.S- based team from Azzurre Spirits. Peter Hunt will continue to lead VDI as President.
Milestone Brands LLC is having a record-breaking year with Dulce Vida Tequila leading the company’s growth headed to 125,000 nine-liter cases in 2022. Milestone is slated to surpass 400,000 nine-liter cases in 2022 with the VDI acquisition.
BDT Capital Partners, LLC (“BDT”) funded the acquisitions and the company’s next stage of growth and acquired a significant minority stake in Milestone Brands through its affiliated funds. Additional terms were not disclosed.