Who owns Black Velvet?
Black Velvet is owned by Heaven Hill (the United States), which has owned the brand since 2019.[1]
This ownership is reported in official statements but has not yet been matched to a regulatory filing.
Evidence: Through the Years, Heaven Hill Brands. Last checked .
Key facts
- Current owner
- Heaven Hill Distillery, Inc. reported
- Owned since
- Owner HQ
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Origin
- 🇨🇦 Canada
- Category
- Beverages › Spirits › Whisky & bourbon
- Trademark registrant
- HEAVEN HILL DISTILLERIES, INC. (USPTO)
- Last verified
- · 2 sources
About Black Velvet
Black Velvet is a Canadian blended whisky. Heaven Hill's history page says it acquired Black Velvet Canadian Whisky in 2019, including its distillery and production campus in Lethbridge, Alberta. The brands page says it is produced in Lethbridge, originally in Quebec, at 40 percent alcohol by volume and aged at least three years in ex-bourbon casks.
Trademark record for Black Velvet
The USPTO record for the Black Velvet mark lists HEAVEN HILL DISTILLERIES, INC. as the owner of record (serial number 73401088). That name matches the owner named above.[2]
Ownership timeline of Black Velvet
- 2019 – present Heaven Hill [1] reported
Where Black Velvet sits in Heaven Hill
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Open the full Heaven Hill ownership tree →
See the full Heaven Hill brand portfolio (12) →
Other brands owned by Heaven Hill
Heaven Hill controls 12 brands on Brandtree, 12 of them in beverages.
Also in beverages
Other brands in whisky & bourbon, and who owns them
The 70 brands in whisky & bourbon on Brandtree belong to 25 owners. The largest is Diageo, with 9; Heaven Hill has 7.
| Brand | Owner | Owner based in |
|---|---|---|
| Buchanan's | Diageo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
| Blood Oath | MGP | 🇺🇸 United States |
| anCnoc | ThaiBev | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
| Jura | Emperador | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| Hibiki | Suntory | 🇯🇵 Japan |
| Glenfiddich | William Grant & Sons | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
| Jack Daniel's | Brown-Forman | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Highland Park | Edrington | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
About the owner: Heaven Hill
Heaven Hill is a privately held company headquartered in United States, founded in 1935. Brandtree records 12 brands under its control.
Heaven Hill is a family-owned and family-led American spirits company. Its own history page says the Old Heavenhill Springs distillery was founded in 1935 by Bardstown-area investors and the five Shapira brothers, and that it is one of the largest family-owned and led spirits companies. Its brands page also lists tequila and mezcal labels such as Lunazul, Tequila Ocho and Mezcal Vago, and further brands such as Hpnotiq and Domaine de Canton; those are left out here because the pages do not establish their ownership or origin clearly enough.
🇨🇦 Black Velvet and other Canadian brands
Brandtree records a controlling owner for 174 brands that began in Canada. 41 of them (24%) are now controlled by a company headquartered in another country, Black Velvet among them.
- Big 8 — Empire 🇨🇦
- Canada Dry — Keurig Dr Pepper 🇺🇸
- Carling — Molson Coors 🇺🇸
- Crown Royal — Diageo 🇬🇧
- Fruité — Lassonde 🇨🇦
- Jones Soda — Jones Soda 🇺🇸
Frequently asked questions
Who is the parent company of Black Velvet?
The parent company of Black Velvet is Heaven Hill, a privately held company headquartered in the United States.
Is Black Velvet Canadian or American?
Black Velvet originated in Canada, but it is owned today by Heaven Hill, which is headquartered in the United States. So Black Velvet is a Canadian-origin brand under American ownership.
Since when has Heaven Hill owned Black Velvet?
Heaven Hill has owned Black Velvet since 2019.
Is Black Velvet still owned by Heaven Hill?
Yes. As of 5 October 2026, Black Velvet is still owned by Heaven Hill. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Sources (2) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] Through the Years — Heaven Hill Brands, Official document; retrieved 4 October 2026.
- [2] USPTO: BLACK VELVET, serial 73401088 — United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark registry; retrieved 5 October 2026.
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