Black Velvet Whisky is a

Canadian whisky Canadian whisky is a type of whisky produced in Canada. Most Canadian whiskies are blended multi-grain liquors containing a large percentage of corn spirits, and are typically lighter and smoother than other whisky styles.

brand owned by

Heaven Hill Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc. is a private, American family-owned and operated distillery founded in 1935 and headquartered in Bardstown, Kentucky, that produces and markets the Heaven Hill brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and a varie ...

and produced in the Black Velvet Distillery in

Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 Alberta municipal censuses, 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

, Alberta. It has a smooth taste and is known for its black labeling. Black Velvet was originally produced at

Schenley Industries Schenley Industries was a liquor company based in New York City with headquarters in the Empire State Building and a distillery in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. It owned several brands of Bourbon whiskey, including Schenley, The Old Quaker Company, Cream ...

in Valleyfield, Quebec, Canada. Schenley's Black Velvet DeLuxe was the only liquor available to

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

officers at Midway in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, where it was held in low regard and known as "Schenley's Black Death". Original owner

Heublein Heublein Inc. (also known as Heublein Spirits) 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, ...

was sold to

Grand Metropolitan Grand Metropolitan plc was a leisure, manufacturing and property conglomerate headquartered in England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index until it merged with Guinness plc to form ...

in 1987. Grand Metropolitan and

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...

merged in 1997 to form

Diageo Diageo plc () is a Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It operates from 132 sites around the world. It was the world's largest distiller before being overtaken by Kweich ...

. In 1999 the distillery was sold by Diageo to Canandaigua Brands. They owned the distillery and brand for 20 years before selling them, along with an inventory of maturing whisky, to

for $266 million (USD). Originally called "Black Label", the name was changed to "Black Velvet" at the suggestion, in the late 1940s, by the Master Distiller Jack Napier because he thought it had a velvety taste and smoothness. Black Velvet produces four expressions which are primarily sold on the export market to the United States: Black Velvet Original, Black Velvet Reserve (aged eight years), Black Velvet Toasted Caramel (introduced in 2012), and Black Velvet Cinnamon Rush (introduced in 2013). This brand is ranked number two in Canadian Whisky market share behind

Crown Royal Crown Royal, also known as Seagram's Crown Royal, is a blended Canadian whisky brand created by Seagram and owned by Diageo since 2000. Production of Crown Royal is done at Gimli, Manitoba, while the blending and bottling of the whisky are done ...

. The first Black Velvet Lady, Patricia Victoria Miller, was introduced to the world in 1969 as an advertisement tool for Black Velvet. Since that time, such famous names as

Christie Brinkley Christie Lee Brinkley (née Hudson; born February 2, 1954) is an American model, actress, and entrepreneur. Brinkley gained worldwide fame with her appearances in ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues'', ultimately appearing on an unprecedented ...

Cybill Shepherd Cybill Lynne Shepherd (born February 18, 1950) is an American actress and former model. Her film debut and breakthrough role came as Jacy Farrow in Peter Bogdanovich's coming-of-age drama ''The Last Picture Show'' (1971) alongside Jeff Bridges. ...

Kim Alexis Kim Marie Alexis (born July 15, 1960) is an American supermodel and actress who was famous in the 1970s and 80s. She appeared on the cover of magazines like ''Sports Illustrated'', Vogue (magazine), ''Vogue'', ''Harper's Bazaar'', ''Glamour (mag ...

Cheryl Tiegs Cheryl Rae Tiegs (born September 25, 1947) is an American model and fashion designer. Frequently described as the first American supermodel, Tiegs is best known for her multiple appearances on the covers of the ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit I ...

, Micah Wylde, and

Kelly Emberg Kelly Kay Emberg (born July 2, 1959) is an American former model who appeared in the ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue'' and in advertisements for Cover Girl cosmetics, Napier Jewelry, and Calvin Klein. Career Emberg was born in Houston, Texa ...

have all been Black Velvet Ladies. In addition, actors

Telly Savalas Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas (January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was an American actor and singer whose career spanned four decades. Noted for his bald head and deep, resonant voice, he is perhaps best known for portraying Lt. Theo Kojak on th ...

Larry Hagman Larry Martin Hagman (September 21, 1931 – November 23, 2012) was an American film and television actor, director, and producer, best known for playing ruthless oil baron J. R. Ewing in the 1978–1991 primetime television soap opera, ''Dal ...

George Burns George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film and television. His arched eyebr ...

and country singer

Tanya Tucker Tanya Denise Tucker (born October 10, 1958) is an American country music singer and songwriter who had her first hit, "Delta Dawn", in 1972 at the age of 13. Over the succeeding decades, Tucker became one of the few child performers to mature int ...

have appeared in the ads. The current Black Velvet Lady is Tami Donaldson, born and raised in Hollywood, Florida.

References

External links

Black Velvet Whisky Homepage
{{Heaven Hill Canadian whisky Alcohol in Alberta