Heublein Inc. was an American producer and distributor of alcoholic beverages and food throughout the 20th century. During the 1960s and 1970s its stock was regarded as one of the most stable financial investments, earning it inclusion in the Nifty Fifty.
History
Heublein was originally a restaurant in Hartford, Connecticut, founded in 1862 by Andrew Heublein, a German American entrepreneur. He was soon joined in business by his two sons Gilbert F. and Louis Heublein. In 1875 they took an order to prepare a quantity of pre-mixed martini and manhattan cocktails for the annual picnic of the Governor's Foot Guard. The event had to be cancelled due to rain. A few days later, a restaurant employee was instructed to dispose of the stored cocktails. But his curiosity led to the discovery and declaration that the alcoholic drinks were "still good". It had been duly noted by the two brothers, who started selling pre-mixed cocktails in the restaurant. These ready-made cocktails were so popular that a distillery was built just to satisfy the increasing demand. The business became Gilbert F. Heublein and Bro. upon its transfer to Andrew's sons Gilbert and Louis Heublein in 1890, when the focus was turning towards their lucrative line of "ready-made" alcoholic cocktail drinks. In 1906 the business gained the rights to distribute A1 Steak Sauce for the US market, under license from Brand & Co. Ltd. of Vauxhall, London, UK. Heublein started sales in the US under the name "Brand's A.1. Sauce". Early in the 20th century, A.1. sauce was a decidedly secondary sideline to Heublein's thriving cocktail business, with its promotions and advertising copy aimed at the carriage trade, delivering to hotels and even directly to the "consumer" at home. When they incorporated in the State of Connecticut on December 2, 1915, they already had offices in New York as well as Hartford. As the 1920s dawned, Heublein's business encountered a major problem, but an unexpected savior appeared from within. The US rights for A.1. Sauce proved fortuitous when their "secondary sideline" became the only product item they were legally permitted to sell for the next thirteen years. The production, transportation and sale of all other Heublein products became illegal in the USA upon enactment of a national prohibition of alcoholic drinks in 1920 and lasting until its repeal in 1933. In 1938 Heublein acquired all rights to Smirnoff Vodka, a brand that had been produced in Russia prior to the October Revolution. Heublein is credited with popularizing vodka in the United States by marketing Smirnoff as "White Whiskey", and with the phrase "leaves you breathless" the probable source of the mistaken belief that vodka consumption leaves no tell-tale odor. Smirnoff became one of Heublein's most successful brands. Heublein also acquired distribution rights in the United States to many other international spirit, wine, and beer brands including Don Q Rum, Jose Cuervo, Black & White, Harvey's Bristol Cream, Irish Mist liqueur, Bell's whisky, Guinness Stout, Lancer's wines, and Bass Ale. Heublein also held American import and distribution rights to non-alcoholic beverages such as Perrier mineral water and Rose's Lime Juice. Heublein's line of pre-mixed alcoholic cocktails included traditional drinks like Manhattans, martinis, stingers, sidecars, and daiquiris, as well as trendier drinks such as the Brass Monkey, Pink Squirrel, and Hobo's Wife. They also sold premixed Zombie cocktails, as well as other Tiki drinks such as the Mai Tai, Dr. Funk, and Navy Grog. In 1969, Heublein began selling some of these cocktails in eight-ounce cans. In the 1970s, Heublein introduced a new line of drinks named "Malcolm Hereford's Cow". This was a flavored, 30-proof alcoholic milk drink that was mostly popular with women and college students regardless of gender. It enjoyed a brief fad before vanishing into obscurity. Heublein purchased Hamm's Brewery in 1965, selling it to a group of Hamm's wholesalers in 1973 who subsequently sold it to the Olympia Brewing Company in 1975. It also made many acquisitions outside of the liquor market, acquiring Grey Poupon in 1936, Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1971, and Hart's Bakeries in 1972. In 1969, Heublein purchased a majority stake in United Vintners, which owned Inglenook, for $100 million. That same year, Heublein also purchased Beaulieu Vineyards for $8.5 million. These acquisitions gave Heublein one of the largest winemaking operations in the United States.
Acquisition and Selloff
In 1982, the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company acquired Heublein Inc. for $1.4 billion. In the corporate reorganizations that followed the merger of R.J. Reynolds and Nabisco, the resulting corporation, RJR Nabisco, began selling off many of Heublein's assets. RJR Nabisco sold Kentucky Fried Chicken to PepsiCo in 1986 and sold the Heublein division and its alcoholic beverage brands to Grand Metropolitan in 1987. In 1994, Heublein sold some of its wine and brandy business to Canandaigua Wine Company. In 1996, Grand Metropolitan ceased using the Heublein name, incorporating the business into International Distillers & Vintners.
