Ryan Reynolds, The New Face of Aviation Gin

Here are a few alcohol brands you probably didn’t know are owned by celebrities. There’s Casamigos Tequila, founded by George Clooney and his two friends, entrepreneur Rande Gerber and real estate tycoon Mike Meldman. There’s Sauza 901 by Justin Timberlake. There’s Barrymore Wines by Drew Barrymore. And there’s Aviation Gin, a craft gin company which Ryan Reynolds recently acquired.

Aviation, produced by House Spirits Distillery in Portland, Oregon, is a medley of cardamom, coriander, star anise, lavender, juniper, sarsaparilla and orange peel. It is the softer and smoother league of American-style gin, and Wine Enthusiast seems to like it.

So does Reynolds, of course. “About a year ago, I tried Aviation for the first time. Since that day, I’ve spent my time finding some way to infiltrate the company,” he says. “If you think all gin tastes the same, you’d be mistaken. I did this for one simple reason: It’s the best damn gin on the planet.”

Moving forward, Reynolds will apparently get his hands dirty in regards to the day-to-day business, overseeing the creative direction of the company. But with his busy actor/writer/producer schedule, let’s just see how that goes. In fact, in an automated email, he jokes: “I don’t know whose idea it was to allow me into the gin business. But I can assure you, there are smarter, more reasonable people in charge.”

Funny. Whatever it is, all we look forward to now is Aviation Gin and tonic on the rocks. Reynolds might be the new face of Aviation, but let’s have the gin speak for itself.