German distiller Rheinland Distillers, which owns Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin and Siegfried Wonderleaf, a non-alcoholic gin alternative, has secured investment from beverage alcohol giant Diageo’s drinks accelerator called Distill Ventures.

The distillery’s founders will retain majority ownership, while Diageo will have a minority stake.

Raphael Vollmar and Gerald Koenen, the founders of Rheinland Distillers, will continue to control the distillery as the company grows.

Elizabeth Brown – Diageo Group Strategy Director said: “Siegfried run a digital-first business model, offering great consumer choice with both an award-winning gin and a non-alcoholic alternative. We are thrilled that they have joined the Distill Ventures portfolio and look forward to supporting Raphael and Gerald on accelerating the Siegfried business.”

According to Rheinland Distillers, the investment will help drive the growth of the company and the Siegfried brand. Apart from the investment, the founders of Siegfried brand will also get access to Distill Venture’s acceleration program.

Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin is said to be a classic handcrafted dry gin containing signature linden blossom notes.

A couple of years ago, Rheinland Distillers introduced Siegfried Wonderleaf, which is the first German non-alcoholic gin alternative. Siegfried Wonderleaf blends the same 18 botanicals used in Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin, and is said to have an allspice aroma profile.

Raphael Vollmar – Rheinland Distillers Managing Director said: “At the beginning, we asked ourselves how far we, as people from outside the industry, would be able to go in such a competitive market with a handcrafted product, 4,000 Euros, hard work and a lot of passion. With today’s step, we are answering this question for ourselves and are delighted to be able to carry the Siegfried brand and the associated attitude to life even further into the world than we ever dreamed possible.”

  Distill Ventures, Drinks acquisition news, Elizabeth Brown, Gerald Koenen, Germany, Raphael Vollmar, Rheinland Distillers, Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin, Siegfried Wonderleaf