Diageo – Launch of partial tender offer for shares in Sichuan Shuijingfang Company Limited

Subsequent to the announcement made on 26 February 2019, the Board of Directors of Sichuan Shuijingfang Company Limited (“SJF”) has been notified that Diageo has launched a partial tender offer, through its wholly owned subsidiary Grand Metropolitan International Holdings Limited (“GMIHL”), to increase its aggregate equity stake in SJF from 60.0% to up to a maximum of 70.0% (the “PTO”).

The PTO price is RMB45.00 per share and gives all shareholders (other than Diageo Highlands Holding B.V. and Sichuan Chengdu Shuijingfang Group Co., Ltd., being wholly-owned subsidiaries of Diageo) the opportunity to elect to sell some or all of their shares in SJF to GMIHL. The maximum number of shares subject to the PTO is 48,854,570 and the PTO period will run from 5 March 2019 to 3 April 2019.

An article from Diageo
https://www.diageo.com/en/news-and-media/press-releases/launch-of-partial-tender-offer-for-shares-in-sichuan-shuijingfang-company-limited/

Gordon’s launches new pink gin

Gordon’s Gin has launched Gordon’s Premium Pink Distilled Gin in the UK on and off-trade markets.

The gin is now available in Tesco for RRSP £16.50 per 70cl bottle (37.5% ABV) and will be available in bars across the UK from August.
Annalisa Tedeschi, head of Gordon’s said: “As Britain’s favourite gin we are excited to launch this delicious new pink gin, inspired by the Spanish gin trend, which is to take the UK by storm.”
Brand owners Diageo says that Gordon’s Gin, established in 1769, is today the world’s number one best-selling gin and that its new spirit is also partly inspired by an original Gordon’s recipe from the 1880s, with redcurrant notes.

An article from Drinks International by Shay Waterworth
http://drinksint.com/news/fullstory.php/aid/7260/Gordon_s_launches_new_pink_gin.html

Guinness Storehouse announces €16 million expansion plan to double the size of iconic gravity bar

The multi award winning Guinness Storehouse has announced details of a €16 million expansion plan which will see the iconic Gravity Bar double in size. With its spectacular unparalleled panoramic 360 degree views, Dublin’s highest bar has proven to be a highlight for the 16.5 million people who have visited the Guinness Storehouse since it opened in 2000.

Upon completion, the expansion will enhance the visitor experience, allowing the Guinness Storehouse to continue to provide a world-class tourism product, providing visitors with an immersive experience and a warm welcome to the ‘Home of Guinness’. Subject to planning permission, it is hoped that construction will commence in 2018 and that the newly enhanced Gravity Bar will welcome visitors by 2019.

An Press Release from Diageo
https://www.diageo.com/en/news-and-media/features/guinness-storehouse-announces-16-million-expansion-plan-to-double-the-size-of-iconic-gravity-bar/

TEQUILA BODY THREATENS TO SUE HEINEKEN

The Tequila Regulatory Council (TRC) is threatening to sue Dutch brewer Heineken over its use of the word ‘Tequila’ in its Tequila-flavoured Desperados beer brand.

The TRC, a trade group of Mexican Tequila producers, claim that the beer is in violation of its DO rules, which state that to use the word ‘Tequila’ a beverage must contain a significant quantity of the spirit.
Desperados is a beer flavoured with Tequila and lemon and aged in Tequila barrels, however the TRC claim tests carried out in Madrid prove that it doesn’t actually contain any Tequila and therefore does not qualify to claim use of the name.
The council has been preparing a case against Heineken’s Desperados brand for the past 10 year but haven’t had the funds to pursue it, until now.
“We cannot permit someone unscrupulously to affect Tequila’s prestige,” Ramón González, CRT director-general said speaking to the Financial Times. “Either they take the word Tequila off it, or they put some Tequila in.” If they refuse, “we’ll have no choice but to fight this [in court]”.
It comes shortly after the sale of George Clooney’s Tequila brand Casamigos to Diageo for $1 billion, signalling the category’s continued move upmarket. Further highlighting its growing success, in February José Cuervo, the world’s biggest Tequila producer, raised more than $900m through an IPO.

An article from The Drinks Business by Lauren Eads
https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2017/06/tequila-body-threatens-to-sue-heineken/