Constellation Brands has announced that it has taken a minority stake in Dos Hombres, the mezcal brand started by “Breaking Bad” stars Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Cranston and Paul launched Dos Hombres two years ago and have seen the brand grow in popularity ever since. The mezcal brand will still be independently owned after the deal, as Constellation made the investment through its venture capital arm.
“Our goal is to make strategic, minority investments in high potential brands in growing categories, and the U.S. mezcal market continues to show great potential,” said Constellation Ventures Vice President Jennifer Evans. “We’re excited to further invest in the category with a great team and brand that we feel has a lot of growth runway.”
Last year, the mezcal category grew 14%. The ultra-premium segment, which Dos Hombres belongs to, is the fastest-growing part of the category.
The news of the investment is the latest in growing number of sales by celebrity back spirits brands to major drinks companies. Last year, Ryan Reynolds sold Aviation Gin to Diageo for up to $610 million. The benchmark for these type of sales came in 2017, when Diageo reportedly bought Casamigos, the tequila brand started by George Clooney and Rande Gerber, for $1 billion.
To learn more about Dos Hombres, head over to the brand’s official website.
More and more celebrities have been entering the spirits and wine space over the last several months. The biggest noisemaker has been Kendall Jenner and her 818 Tequila, which was announced in February and shrouded in controversy ever since.
In other recent wine and spirits world entrances, the Delevingne sisters (Cara, Chloe, and Poppy) unveiled their own Prosecco, Della Vite, in May.
Earlier this month, Ellie Goulding acquired a “significant” stake in hard seltzer brand Served. The RTD brand is produced in Herefordshire, England, where Goulding grew up.
