Diageo Acquires Super-Premium Tequila Brand Peligroso

Diageo, the world's leading premium drinks business, today added super-premium tequila brand Peligroso to the company's portfolio. This announcement comes just three weeks after the company announced a joint venture with Sean Combs that acquired prestige tequila brand DeLeon.

"Acquiring Peligroso is part of Diageo's strategy of creating a collection of superb quality and distinctive tequilas at complementary price points to appeal to a wide range of consumers," said Larry Schwartz, President, Diageo North America. "This positions Diageo strongly to capture the range of emerging consumer trends that will shape and drive the next few years of category value growth."

Peligroso is an award-winning 100 percent blue weber agave tequila from the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico. Founded by two avid surfers, this emerging tequila brand is rooted in the action sports and surfing culture of Southern California. The acquisition of Peligroso will give Diageo an offering in super-premium ($20-$40) tequila, the fastest growing tequila segmentin the U.S., according to Nielsen. With a popular cinnamon variant, Peligroso benefits from consumer interest in flavored spirits in other categories like vodka and whiskey.

Peligroso is a complement to Diageo's other tequila brands, Tequila Don Julio (primarily an ultra-premium brand) and DeLeon (an ultra-premium and above brand).

Peligroso comes in four variants, including Cinnamon, Silver, Reposado and Anejo. The current suggested retail prices range from $30 to $55 per 750ml bottle and is available in 12 U.S. states. The brand was purchased from the California-based Peligroso Spirits Company, LLC.