Jason Momoa is putting his muscle behind a new venture
Have you had your fill of celebrity spirit news? Good, because there’s more to report—Jason Momoa, the musclebound star of Aquaman and Game of Thrones when it was still good, is launching a new spirit brand called Meili Vodka.
Momoa’s partner on the new endeavour is Blaine Halvorson, founder of vintage brand Junk Food Clothing and sustainable fashion line MadeWorn. Meili is being positioned as a sustainable vodka, and while details about that are a bit nebulous it seems to mostly refer to the fact that the vodka is bottled in 100 per cent post-consumer recycled glass and no two bottles will be exactly alike. The vodka is produced in Montana, Halvorson’s home state, where grains are sourced from local farms for the mashbill. The water used to proof and distill the vodka comes from springs fuelled by snow and rainwater. And in a final step the brand touts as being crucial to the vodka’s flavour, the spirit is allowed to “rest” and “breathe” in the fresh mountain air before it is bottled. That’s not exactly science, but it is good marketing.
Momoa and Halvorson will be appearing at WSWA’s 2023 Access Live in Florida this April, an industry event with panel discussions and potential business partnerships in the making. “It’s an incredible honour to address my new friends and colleagues in the wine and spirits industry as the chosen keynote speaker,” said Momoa in a press release. “I’m not only proud, but extremely excited to celebrate the launch of Meili Vodka—our new sustainable brand of craft spirits. These three days will centre around the elevation of discovery, shared stories and the beauty of new frontiers.”
Despite the continued popularity of vodka and its dominance over other spirits categories in a very crowded market, it can be difficult to make this often tasteless and odourless spirit stand out. Momoa is certainly betting his star power will help with that, not to mention eschewing the tequila category which might not have enough room for another star-backed brand. Still, Channing Tatum, Sean Combs and Kate Hudson better watch out, because this new vodka has some muscle behind it.
This article was first published on Robb Report USA