Aviation Gin's Owner: A Secret Investor or a Famous Celebrity?

Aviation Gin gained a new spokesperson in 2018 when actor and investor Ryan Reynolds bought into the company for an undisclosed stake. He purchased his stake in the Portland-based gin company from Davos Brands, LLC at the time. But in 2020, the company was bought by Diageo. So who owns Aviation Gin in 2023?

Diageo is currently the majority owner of Aviation American Gin, also called simply Aviation Gin. Does Ryan Reynolds still own a portion of the company? Here's a dive into the company's founding and history since then.

Davos Brands, LLC, based in New York, acquired Aviation Gin in 2016. It continued to be distilled in Portland at the original House Spirits Distillery. According to OregonLive, the brand had a 97 point rating by Wine Enthusiast magazine. In 2018, actor and investor Ryan Reynolds bought an undisclosed stake in Aviation Gin.

The founders of Aviation Gin were Christian Krogstad and Ryan Magarian, who started the brand in 2006. House Spirits Distillery produces the brand in Portland, Oreg., and now it's distributed in 15 countries and across the U.S. Several ownership changes have taken place since the company launched in 2006.

When announcing his acquisition of part of Aviation Gin, Reynolds stated, "Aviation is the best tasting gin in the world. Once I tried it, I knew I wanted to get involved with the company in a big way."

As CNBC noted in 2020, Reynolds' stake in Aviation Gin was "an unspecified minority stake" that he acquired in 2018. Diageo added Aviation Gin to its impressive portfolio of brands in 2020, paying up to $610 million in the reported acquisition. Other well-known brands owned by Diageo include:

• Johnnie Walker
• Tanqueray
• Smirnoff
• Guinness
• Bailey's
• Canadian Crown Royal
• Captain Morgan
• Don Julio

The big question is, did Reynolds sell his portion of the company in the 2020 sale? According to CNBC, he retained his interest in the gin company after the transaction. The Deadpool actor also served as its creative director and continues to make promotional materials.

Diageo, the company that bought Davos Brands and with it, Aviation Gin, in 2020, is listed on the NYSE under the ticker symbol DEO. As of March 16, 2023, at 1:33 p.m. EST, the stock price was $174.05. Currently, the firm has a market capitalization of $98.223 billion.

The premium gin brand sold for about $610 million in 2020. In 2019, the Distilled Spirits Council noted that distillers had generated $918 million in revenue, representing a 3 percent increase over 2018. Of course, that's for all gin, not only the Aviation Gin brand name.

At the time of the sale to Diageo, Aviation American Gin was the second-largest super-premium U.S. gin brand, CNBC reported. Diageo also stated that Aviation Gin represented 40 percent of "super-premium gin category growth" in the nation.

Exact figures for the current value of Davos Brands aren't available, but one can look to the $610 million buyout from Diageo in 2020 for a rough estimate. In 2021, Davos Brands entered into a partnership with BrandMuscle, an industry marketing firm.

Davos Brands is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Diageo and continues to develop premium wine and spirits brands. However, Davos no longer owns Aviation Gin and its only portfolio holding is TYKU Sake.