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Ketel One maker Nolet moves for Lucas Bols
Nolet Group, the family-owned maker of Ketel One vodka, has struck a deal to buy Dutch distilling peer Lucas Bols.
An offer valuing the Galliano liqueur owner at €269.5m ($287.8m) has been backed by Lucas Bols’ management and supervisory boards.
Family-owned Nolet has been a shareholder in Lucas Bols since the cocktail maker listed in 2015. It owns 29.9% of the business.
Diageo offloads Windsor Global whisky unit
Diageo has sold its Windsor Global whisky business to a South Korean private-equity firm. The UK spirits giant has agreed a deal with PT W Co., a Korean company sponsored by South Korean investment firm Pine Tree Investment & Management Co. Financial details were not disclosed.
Bacardi buys mezcal brand Ilegal
Bacardi has fully acquired the mezcal brand Illegal, six years after the spirits giant first invested in the US business. Ilegal, based in New York, was founded by John Rexer after he began importing mezcal from Oaxaca in Mexico to his bar in Antigua. Bacardi bought an unspecified minority stake in Ilegal in 2017. As well as Bacardi, Ilegal’s previous backers included US-based private-equity firm VMG Partners.
William Grant acquires UK gin producer Silent Pool Distillers
William Grant & Sons has snapped up Silent Pool Distillers, adding the UK gin producer to a portfolio that already includes the Hendrick’s brand. The family-owned spirits group said the production of Silent Pool’s gins will remain at its new asset’s Surrey Hills distillery. Set up by Ian McCulloch and James Shelbourne in 2014, Silent Pool’s “ultra-premium” gin is sold in more than 30 countries.
