At 89, Maurice Kanbar Launches Blue Angel Vodka to Fuel Philanthropy

Blue Angel vodka, a new spirits brand, is being launched today by its founder Maurice Kanbar, who will donate its proceeds to benefit charitable causes. Maurice Kanbar, a spirits-industry legend, created one of world's best-selling premium vodka brands and sold it in 2002. Since then, he's given away tens of millions of dollars to charitable causes. Now, at 89 years old, he wants to do it one more time.

Kanbar, a lifelong martini lover and serial inventor, is launching his most refined, best-tasting vodka yet with a singular goal of funding more philanthropic generosity. Blue Angel vodka has already won a 2017 Double Gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

"Most of us at his age would be happy to simply sit outside and enjoy the sunshine. But, not Maurice. Even at 89, he wants to keep giving back in a meaningful way that benefits mankind," says Tsach Gilboa, COO of Blue Angel Spirits. "It's amazing that he has the energy and vision to create a new brand when most people nearing 90 are kicking back. Maurice's sole purpose is to grow Blue Angel fast and donate the proceeds to charity. I'm humbled to be a part of it."

Blue Angel vodka, made from all-American corn and gluten free, goes through a 6X distillation process to filter out impurities (congeners). The water used from Fairfield, California is further filtrated through deionization and reverse osmosis to remove more impurities at a molecular level.

"I've got a nice place to live here in San Francisco, a ten-year-old Lexus and I get to have lunch with friends nearly every day. At my age, I don't need any more money, but a lot of great causes do," says Kanbar. "This idea of selling a whole lot of great vodka and giving away money might not get me into heaven, but it will be fun trying. And, I'm sure we'll be able to do a lot of good."

Kanbar's past philanthropic donations have centered on education, healthcare and the arts including $21 million donated to Philadelphia University, his alma mater, where he earned a chemistry degree, $5 million to NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, and $1 million to the Osher Center endowment campaign to help conduct research and train the next generation of doctors, nurses and pharmacists at UCSF's world-class medical school. He's also donated money to create the Kanbar Cardiac Center at the California Pacific Medical Center and has provided financial backing for KQED's "ImageMakers" series of independent films.

Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits, the nation's largest wine and spirits distributor, is rolling out Blue Angel vodka in the San Francisco Bay Area first. The ultra-premium vodka will be aggressively priced at $19.99 MSRP for a 750ML bottle to encourage faster trial and adoption.

About Blue Angel Vodka
Maurice Kanbar, a legend in the spirits industry, sold his first vodka company in 2002 which allowed him to give away tens of millions of dollars to charity. Now, at 89, he's doing it again with the launch of Blue Angel vodka. Distilled and bottled in the San Francisco Bay Area, Blue Angel is an ultra-premium vodka made from all-American corn, distilled six times, and uses reverse osmosis and deionization to ensure that it's pure and clean tasting. For more information, visit: http://www.blueangelvodka.com

Blue Angel vodka's social media channels include:

• Instagram: @blueangelvodka
• Facebook: BlueAngelVodkaSF
• Twitter: @blueangelvodka

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