W.L. LYONS BROWN III ADDS “ENTREPRENEUR” TO HIS RESUME Brown is putting a new spin on luxury spirits with Altamar Brands, LLC	W.L. LYONS BROWN III
Los Angeles, California (July 15, 2008) – W.L. Lyons Brown III puts a modern luxury twist on old legendary spirits with his new company, Altamar Brands, LLC. Brown left his family’s legendary and conservative Kentucky-based marketing company, Brown-Forman Corporation, responsible for Jack Daniels and Southern Comfort, to form his own company in August 2005. The visionary and charismatic entrepreneur is now focused on developing luxury spirits brands and fixing century-old problems within the industry. Altamar Brands was launched behind a premium tequila called Corralejo, which was quickly doubled in volume and sold for a $10 million profit as it was not the correct fit to be their pioneer spirit. This allowed Altamar Brands enough fiscal support to launch three upscale luxury spirits in the United States market in less than two years that follow the new company’s revolutionary and sophisticated vision—Right Gin, Kübler Absinthe, and Tequila Ocho. Developed entirely by Altamar Brands as its maiden spirit, Right Gin is the result of what Brown saw as a serious problem in the existing gins on the market. The fresh and innovative brand was created to fix the polarizing taste of gin for the modern palate as well as to make the classic spirit hip and edgy. In supporting the image, Las Vegas had a 100 day exclusive on Right Gin, and since then, the brand has launched in 11 of the most high profile cities in the US such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and most recently, Miami.
In August of 2007, Altamar Brands, LLC partnered with The Blackmint Distillery to bring the first authentic Swiss Absinthe to the United States market in nearly 100 years. The brand, Kübler, is from the birthplace of absinthe in the Val-de-Travers. Brown and the Kübler team of attorneys convinced the US government to allow the legal sale of authentic Kübler Absinthe in this country. Kübler was launched in New York City in October of 2007 and is currently available in 35 states. Resulting from the massive interest in the category, Kübler is expected to be available in all 50 states by the New Year. Notably, Kübler has recently won the absinthe taste test by a large margin by acclaimed Epicurious.com and recently scored a 92 in the Blue Reviews by Anthony Dias Blue in The Tasting Panel Magazine. Altamar Brands’ newest acquisition and seemingly unequivocal success, Tequila Ocho, is single estate tequila that will introduce the concept of “terrior” to the category. This luxury ultra-premium tequila is for connoisseurs made by aficionados and is re-setting the tequila category. Authentic, hand-crafted Ocho is unique in that it will introduce vintages annually showcasing nuances in agave flavours from each estate. The brand will launch its first vintage in California in August 2008, and then in Chicago, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Boston and Miami by the end of the year. In 2007, Forbes pegged Brown as an entrepreneur seeking “a new audience for out-of-vogue spirits.” Still, this continues to be his main objective as he has managed to launch and maintain revitalized spirits through his luxury brands. Today, the company has 19 employees based in the major markets around the US and one in London to oversee the development in Europe. For the immediate future, he and Altamar Brands are focused on building distribution and consumer momentum in existing markets with these brands. “We will grow the portfolio but for the time being we want to keep our focus very tight”. “Altamar was founded in 2005 for the sole purpose of building luxury spirits brands that change established perceptions,” says Brown. “We place a premium on the small company model that embraces the notion that we will build a portfolio that prioritizes focus and the ability to do a few things exceptionally well. Delivering unique brands with strong images to the marketplace will always be at the top of our list.” For more information please visit www.rightgin.com and www.kublerabsinthe.com. Ocho’s web site will be up by September 2008 at www.tequilaocho.com. About Altamar Brands, LLC Altamar Brands is a private equity firm located in Corona del Mar, California. Founded in 2005 by W.L. Lyons Brown, III, Altamar currently sells 3 premium spirits brands. One can find the select brands in high end hotels, bars and nightclubs in all major metropolitan cities in the US. Over the next few years, Altamar plans to add a few more arrangements to its beautiful bouquet of exclusive spirits.