Celebrities have been endorsing booze brands for decades. The most famous example from the 20th century is probably Frank Sinatra’s relationship with Jack Daniel’s, an arrangement that benefited both parties — Frank got lots of free booze, Jack got an amazing PR boost. Nowadays, actors, musicians, and athletes are creating (or sometimes just lending their names to) spirits brands, from Bob Dylan and Heaven’s Door to Drake and Virginia Black. Over the past year, there have been a slew of new celebrity booze brands, and the current trend seems to be almost all about tequila. This makes sense, as the category continues to grow rapidly here in the U.S., and distilleries in Mexico often produce dozens of different brands. Here are seven recent celebrity spirits that have joined this crowded field that you can try now.
Dos Hombres Mezcal
What’s the next best thing to a Breaking Bad reunion? El Camino on Netflix. Lagging way behind that is this new mezcal from Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston. The two actors apparently traveled around Oaxaca to find the right mezcal to source and label with their Dos Hombres name. This has thrilled some and annoyed others, who were not excited to see a couple of rich white guys hawking mezcal (and some fans felt duped by Paul’s cryptic Instagram announcement, expecting an actual Breaking Bad reunion instead).
Villa One Tequila
Villa One is a new tequila brand from pop star Nick Jonas and designer John Varvatos that is part of the Stoli Group portfolio. There are blanco, reposado, and añejo expressions available, made at the same distillery in Jalisco that produces brands like Cenote and Tres Ochos under the eye of master distiller Arturo Fuentes. This is a premium tequila brand, with prices ranging from $45 to $60 depending on the age. According to Jonas, he took a hands-on approach: “It was critical to us that we take part in the decision-making process every step of the way and, now, we feel that this is exactly the tequila we sought out to create almost two years ago.”
Santo Fino Blanco Tequila
Bleached hair brothers Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri have come up with this new blanco tequila, which joins the tequila-mezcal blend Santo Puro Mezquila in their Los Santo lineup (Maroon 5’s Adam Levine was also involved in that release). Hagar also has his Cabo Wabo Tequila, and Fieri is the mayor of Flavortown, so these two presumably know a little about marketing. The tequila is made at the El Viejito Distillery in Jalisco.
Teremana Tequila
The Rock has a new tequila brand in the works — and you’re welcome (obligatory Moana joke). The tequila, created in partnership with Ken Austin of Avion and Proper No. Twelve fame, is not available yet. But according to Twitter, it will be released this March as both blanco and reposado expressions priced around $30. It appears as if The Rock and his team are building a distillery from the ground up instead of just putting his name on a spirit already being produced, but details are scarce at this point about the production process. It was just announced that Mast-Jägermeister will be distributing Teremana.
Cincoro Tequila
This is an expensive new tequila brand that is now an official sponsor of the LA Lakers. This makes sense, given that it was created by some big names in basketball, including owner Jeanie Buss and the legendary Michael Jordan. The ultra-premium range starts with a blanco for $70 and ends with an extra añejo priced at a hefty $1,600. The tequila is made at a distillery that produces many other brands, and is comprised of two distillates that are blended together to create the final product. Cincoro was released in 12 markets this fall, but will roll out nationally over the coming year.
The Finnish Long Drink
Miles Teller is a co-owner of this Finnish canned boozy beverage. It’s not a hard seltzer, it’s not a canned cocktail; the long drink is basically a canned distilled spirit with a bit of mixer for flavor. There are various types that you can find in Finland, but this one, which is produced here in the U.S., is basically gin mixed with grapefruit and juniper flavors.
King St. Vodka
Kate Hudson’s new vodka brand was inspired by her love of dirty martinis and named after her former residence on New York City’s King Street. It’s distilled seven times in Santa Barbara at Cutler’s Artisan Spirits (vodka brands often like to mention how many times their spirit is distilled, which supposedly results in a cleaner, more pure spirit). Hudson created King St. along with David Kanbar, who was also behind Real Housewife Bethenny Frankel’s low-calorie Skinnygirl brand. It’s bottled at a slightly higher proof than most vodka at 43 percent ABV, and comes in a pretty bottle with lots of flowers on the label.
