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Corby Spirit and Wine Limited

About Corby Spirit and Wine Limited

Brand/Supplier
Manufacturer
Spirits
Alcoholic Beverage
Corby Spirit and Wine Limited is a leading Canadian marketer and distributor of spirits and imported wines. With approximately 21% of spirits sales in Canada, Corby?s premium portfolio includes many of the top-selling brands in Canada. Corby is affiliated with Pernod Ricard S.A., a global leader in the spirits and wine industry.?

Who We Are

Corby’s portfolio includes some of the most renowned brands in Canada, including J.P. Wiser’s, Lot No.40, Pike Creek and Gooderham & Worts Canadian whiskies, as well as Lamb’s rum, Polar Ice vodka and McGuinness liqueurs. Corby also owns some unique Canadian brands including Ungava Gin, Cabot Trail, Chic Choc and The Foreign Affair Winery. Through its affiliation with Pernod Ricard S.A., a global leader in the spirits and wine industry, Corby also represents leading international brands such as Absolut vodka, Chivas Regal, Aberlour, The Glenlivet and Ballantine’s Scotch whiskies, Jameson Irish whiskey, Beefeater gin, Malibu rum, Kahlúa liqueur, Mumm Champagne, and Jacob’s Creek, Stoneleigh, Campo Viejo, and Wyndham Estate wines. With our unique portfolio of unique Canadian brands and international premium brands encompassing every major category of wines and spirits, Corby has the most comprehensive portfolio in the market. Together, they create a strong and vibrant portfolio which gives consumers the choice and taste variety they are looking for.

Our Culture

We have passion, spirit, and a thirst for being bold and igniting moments that make life worth living.

We bring people together.

From patios to dining rooms and from pubs to restaurants, tables across the country are set with products from our premium portfolio.

We are passionate hosts – a family of exceptional people who believe in the virtues of responsible consumption and creating a better way to live and work together.

We are respectful guests – of our business partners, our local communities and our planet.
We believe that real magic happens when people from different backgrounds can share and collaborate. Inclusivity makes us stronger, more creative, and more agile.

We’ve been around a long time, and while a lot has changed over the years — the universal desire to stop and live in the moment has stayed the same.

Every day, our people do their best to Create Win-Win Memorable Experiences − with consumers, customers, and one another. It’s our mantra, our raison d’être and the force behind our continued success.

Giving Back

Sustainability

We share a world of finite resources, under huge pressure. Corby is committed to minimizing waste at every step by imagining, producing and distributing our products in ways that optimize and help preserve natural resources.

Sustainability is at the core of our operations – from building water, energy and waste management efficiencies, to joining the global call to rethink the use of plastics across our business.

In 2019, we began a national partnership with Trash Tiki, a passionate bartending duo that tours the world to raise awareness about food waste and create cocktails from materials destined for landfill. To date, the group has organized sustainability pop-ups in over 100 cities, and has educated more than 4,000 bartenders around the world. Find out more about our partnership here.

Corby Spirit and Wine Limited History

For the past 160 years, Corby Spirit and Wine Limited has been at the forefront of the spirits and wine industry in Canada, building a portfolio of Canadian favourites and iconic international brands. Through it all, the company has evolved through constant innovation, while staying true to its Canadian roots. The history of Corby Spirit and Wine Limited begins in the early Ontario frontier when whisky was as much a part of daily life as bread and meat…

1826
Our founder, Henry Corby, immigrates from the UK to Canada at age 26 and sets up a small food shop and bakery in Belleville, Ontario.

1840s & 50s
In 1837, Henry Corby sells his bakery and buys a St. Lawrence steamer where he gets involved in buying grain. Henry Corby becomes interested in the distilling process and he quickly starts making his own brand of whisky for local consumption as a sideline to the main milling operation. By 1859, the distillery operation is incorporated and equally important to Henry as the mill operations.

1880s & 90s
In 1881, Henry’s son, Henry Corby II, takes over the business. Under his direction, the Company begins to evolve. They bottle their own brand of whisky and sell it under the name of Corby. The quality whisky becomes more and more popular and new markets open. The Company also begins to diversify by importing Scotch whisky and wines.

1910s
Early in the decade, Corby established an office in Montréal. In October 1912, Henry Corby II is appointed to the Canadian Senate. War changes the business, and the distillery suspends normal operations to dedicate itself to the war effort, producing alcohol for munitions.

1920s
After the war ends, H. Corby Distillery is sold to the Canadian Industrial Alcohol Company Limited. This new organization purchases the assets of JP Wiser’s Distillery Limited of Prescott, Ontario, and moves its operations to Corbyville, Ontario.

1935-1945
Hiram Walker – Gooderham & Worts Ltd. acquires 51% of equity in Corby Distillery Limited. But, World War II forces the distillery once again to suspend normal operations in favour of producing alcohol for munitions.

1952
While in Europe during World War II, Canadian troops had acquired new tastes for imported spirits and wines and in 1952, Corby signs a joint venture agreement with the United Rum Merchants of London, England, bringing the renowned Lamb’s family of rums to the Corbyville distillery site.

1969
The Company changes its name to Corby Distilleries Limited – Les Distilleries Corby Limitée and is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

1978
Corby purchases Meagher’s Distillery Limited of Montréal and its subsidiary, the William Mara Company of Toronto. This acquisition expands the Company’s presence in the domestic liqueur market and, through William Mara, brings representation of international brands such as Beefeater gin, along with an enhanced wine portfolio.

1987
Allied Lyons PLC successfully acquires 51% of Hiram Walker – Gooderham & Worts Ltd. shares, thereby becoming Corby’s majority shareholder.

1988
Corby purchases the assets of McGuinness Distilling Co. Ltd. and acquires new brands such as Polar Ice vodka and the McGuinness range of mixable liqueurs.

1989
The Corbyville distillery closes after 132 years and all maturing whisky inventory is transferred to the Hiram Walker facility in Windsor, Ontario.

2005
The new millennium marked the beginning of a new era of growth and innovation for Corby. In 2005, Pernod Ricard S.A. becomes Corby’s majority shareholder. They both enter into long-term representation and production agreements, adding international market-leading brands such as Chivas Regal, The Glenlivet Scotch Whiskies and Jacob’s Creek wines. Corby also acquires the international rights to Lamb’s rum.

2008
Corby adds the global powerhouse vodka brand ABSOLUT to its representation portfolio through an agreement with Pernod Ricard.

2013
In November, Corby announces a new brand identity and changes its name to Corby Spirit and Wine Limited.

2016
Corby acquires the spirits assets of Domaines Pinnacle Inc., comprised of the unique Ungava® Premium Canadian gin brand, Chic Choc® spiced rum, and a range of maple-based liqueurs including Coureur des Bois® and Cabot Trail®, as well as related production assets and inventory; operating as a new Corby subsidiary, Ungava Spirits Co. Ltd.

2017
Corby acquires The Foreign Affair Winery, a Niagara, Ontario-based VQA wine producer.

2023
Corby acquires Ace Beverage Group - a leading better-for-you (BFY) beverage alcohol company in Canada comprised of Cottage Springs, Ace Hill, Cabana Coast, Liberty Village, and Good Vines.