Infinium Spirits announced on Wednesday that the San Diego distributor acquired Howler Head, the banana-flavored bourbon with a UFC partnership. Howler Head was previously distributed by Campari. Infinium Spirits was founded in 2005 and represents brands like Templeton Whiskey and Seagram’s Vodka.
“We are excited to welcome Howler Head to the Infinium Family,” President of Infinium Spirits Jan Tharp said in a statement. “Howler Head embodies the innovative spirit that Infinium represents, and we’re eager to take this incredible brand to new heights, both in the United States and around the world.”
Infinium Spirits considers Howler Head to be a “trailblazer” because of its unorthodox combination of bold banana flavor and Kentucky bourbon. The distributor praised the flavored whiskey brand’s irreverent marketing and loyal fanbase of adventurous drinkers.
Howler Head launched in 2020, and a 2022 write-up in VinePair reported the bourbon is made by none other than Green River Distilling Co, which is under the stewardship of Bardstown Bourbon.
In the brand’s infancy, it attracted the attention of CEO and President of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Dana White, who fell in love with it. He signed on with the brand as a founder and partner. With White aboard, a relationship with the UFC made perfect sense.
“When Dana White and the UFC came on board it took things to a completely new level,” said CEO of Campari and Catalyst Spirits, Simon Hunt.
The UFC announced that the fighting organization extended its partnership with Howler Head in May. The partnership originated in 2021, and Howler Head ventured into uncharted territory as UFC’s first Official Flavored Whiskey Partner. The organization reported that the extension of the banana-flavored bourbon’s partnership came hot on the heels of a successful launch in Australia.
Though the sum Infinium paid to acquire Howler Head from its previous distributor, Campari, remains a mystery, this move appears to be in alignment with Campari’s latest strategy. Reuters reported in early March that Campari was pausing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) due to hits from American tariffs.
“The main reason I’ve decided to pause M&A for now is our net debt… we need to continue to get that down,” said Hunt.
It is unclear whether the sale of Howler Head was a part of that strategy. The spirits giant previously warned of the negative impacts of tariffs and claimed that it would consider 2025 to be a “transition year,” according to Reuters. In early March, Hunt expressed that he wanted to focus on “efficiency,” “commercial execution” and achieving a sales increase to total costs.
No responses yet