Brown-Forman returns to Scotch with £285 mln whisky acquisition

LONDON, April 27 (Reuters) - Jack Daniel's owner Brown-Forman Corp is getting back into the Scotch whisky business after an 11-year absence with the 285 million pound ($415.42 million) purchase of the BenRiach Distillery.

The deal, announced on Wednesday, will add the GlenDronach, BenRiach, and Glenglassaugh single-malt Scotch whiskies to a portfolio that already includes the American whiskey brands Woodford Reserve and Early Times in addition the flagship Jack Daniel's.

Brown-Forman, based in Louisville, Kentucky, used to sell the Glenmorangie single-malt whisky in various markets, and was a minority shareholder in the brand. It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) sold its interest when Moet Hennessy (Paris: FR0000121014 - news) bought Glenmorangie in 2005.

Brown-Forman in January agreed to sell its Southern Comfort and Tuaca brands to Sazerac for $543.5 million, to focus on its core whiskey business.

($1 = 0.6861 pounds) (Reporting by Martinne Geller in London, editing by Louise Heavens)