Effen
JIM BEAM BRANDS CO. — CHICAGO, IL
Belgium, Netherlands
John Horn interviewed 100 bartenders in 14 markets for Effen, and they asked for a bottle that grips when wet, Beam Suntory's founders site says. Read the brand history
Jump to: Brand history · Labels · At a Glance · Producers · Sources
| Label Name | Spirit Type | Status | Approval Date | Producer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Effen VODKA - OTHER FLAVORED | Vodka - Other Flavored | Approved | 2026-02-13 | JIM BEAM BRANDS CO. |
 | Effen VODKA 80-89 PROOF | Vodka 80-89 Proof | Approved | 2025-12-05 | JIM BEAM BRANDS CO. |
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Effen at a Glance
Effen has 2 distinct products with 7 total TTB label approvals, including Vodka - Other Flavored, Vodka 80-89 Proof. Labels approved between 2020-12-03 and 2026-02-13. Label origins on file: Belgium, Netherlands.
At a Glance data sourced from public TTB records.
Effen Vodka: A Dutch Wheat Vodka Built by Chicago Marketers
JStar Brands, formed in 2001 by former KBA Marketing partners Jon Deitelbaum, Brad Trayser, and Daniel Stoothoff, found the Hooghoudt distillery in 2002 and worked with it to create a wheat vodka, Beam Suntory's founders site says. The partners were given Hooghoudt's 120-year-old neutral grain spirit recipe and refined it for their own vision of the vodka, the site continues.
What the name Effen means
The name came in 2003, when Stoothoff stopped at Dutch bars on his way to the distillery and the bartenders inspired him to call the liquid Effen, by the same site's account. The word effen means “smooth, even and balanced” in Dutch, and Dutch bartenders used it to describe good vodka, the site adds.
How Effen was positioned, from Chicago to 50 Cent
The brand's headquarters was in Chicago because of the founders' ties to the city through KBA Marketing, and the initial launch cities were Chicago and New York City, followed by Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Dallas, the founders site says. In 2015 the brand was repositioned behind a partnership with 50 Cent, with Ciroc identified as the key competitor, the site's timeline adds. A 2020 reorganization of the vodka portfolio then positioned Effen as a brand specifically targeting LGBTQ+ and Black consumers.
Effen flavors, from Black Cherry to Yuzu Citrus
Effen entered the flavored vodka market in 2004 with Black Cherry, and Yuzu Citrus and Rose are the latest of several flavors added since, according to Beam Suntory's founders site. Those two arrived in April 2019 at 75 proof, made with 100 percent wheat from Northern France and distilled in Northern Holland, a Beam Suntory release said. The founders site, for its part, describes the original vodka as produced from Northern Holland wheat. The release described them as an extension of the Different by Design campaign launched in 2018.
Where Effen vodka is made
The Hooghoudt distillery was established by the baker Hero Jan Hooghoudt in 1888, and fourth-generation Bert Hooghoudt was leading it and turning toward vodka when the partners arrived, the founders site says. The distillery sits near Groningen, the water mixes ground water from the Drentsche Plateau with water from the Drentsche Aa National Landscape, and the vodka is filtered through active carbon.
The label origin on file differs in the TTB snapshot: approvals filed by Jim Beam Brands Co. of Chicago dated December 2020 to September 2021 list the Netherlands, while approvals dated December 2025 to February 2026 list Belgium. Explore the TTB label data for Effen on this page.
Sources
- Beam Suntory founders site (founders.beamsuntory.com). “Effen Vodka.” Undated, copyright 2022. https://founders.beamsuntory.com/dna/effen
- Beam Suntory (press release hosted by Suntory Global Spirits). “Effen Vodka Expands Portfolio With Effen Rose And Effen Yuzu Citrus.” 10 April 2019. https://www.suntoryglobalspirits.com/news/effenr-vodka-expands-portfolio-effen-rose-and-effen-yuzu-citrus
- TTB Public COLA Registry via BUY.VODKA data snapshot (src/data/labels.json, local build 16 October 2026). “Effen” label approvals. Local read-only query, 16 October 2026.
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Produced At
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