Drambuie, a blend of Scotch whisky, spices and honey whose history goes back to 1745, was put up for sale earlier this year by its owners, the MacKinnon family.

Earlier press reports said the sale of Drambuie was expected to be in the area of 100 million pounds, but a William Grant spokesman declined to comment on the price.

This is the latest in a string of spirits deals this year, including the sale of United Spirits' (>> United Spirits Ltd) Whyte & Mackay to Emperador (>> Emperador Inc), Campari's (>> Davide Campari-Milano SpA) purchases of Fratelli Averna and Forty Creek and the sale of Loch Lomond Distillery to Exponent Private Equity.

(Reporting by Martinne Geller in London, editing by Louise Heavens)

Stocks treated in this article : Davide Campari-Milano SpA, United Spirits Ltd, Emperador Inc