Which investors back cannabis beverage brands?

If you mean investors actively interested in cannabis/THC beverage brands, there’s a fairly distinct group of VCs, cannabis funds, and beverage-focused investors with relevant track records.

Investors with demonstrated cannabis-beverage investments

• Imaginary Ventures — Led/co-led multiple rounds in CANN, including its $27M Series A. Its portfolio also includes consumer brands outside cannabis.
• InvestBev — Beverage-focused private equity firm that made a multimillion-dollar investment in CANN in 2022. This is particularly relevant if you're looking for investors with alcohol/beverage distribution and brand-building expertise.
• Navy Capital — Cannabis-focused investment firm that participated in CANN's early financing.
• JM10 Partners — Cannabis-focused investor and co-lead of CANN's $5M seed round alongside Imaginary.
• Global Founders Capital — Participated in CANN's early financing.
• Cresco Capital — Also participated in CANN's seed financing.
• Green Thumb Industries / GTI Capital — Has invested in CANN; GTI is a major U.S. cannabis operator.
• DCM Ventures — Backed K-Zen Beverages, another cannabis-beverage company.

Strategic investors worth knowing

The category is also attracting large beverage and alcohol companies, although their involvement has often been strategic/experimental rather than traditional venture investing. Reuters reported in 2025 that companies including Constellation Brands, Pernod Ricard and Tilray were exploring or entering cannabis beverages.

There are also precedents involving Molson Coors, Canopy Growth and Lagunitas, among others, in cannabis-infused beverages.

What this means for fundraising

I'd divide the investor universe into three buckets:

CANN is probably the most useful benchmark because it has attracted all three types of capital: consumer VC, cannabis investors, beverage-focused PE, and prominent individual investors. Its disclosed financing includes a $5M seed round and a $27M Series A, with InvestBev subsequently investing.

If you're raising for a cannabis beverage brand, I can also build you a target list of 30–50 investors, including check size, stage, cannabis/beverage investments, geography, and relevant partner/contact—using currently available 2025–2026 information.

Investing in cannabis and hemp-derived THC beverage brands comes from a diverse mix of traditional venture capital firms, beverage-focused micro-funds, major alcohol/beverage conglomerates, and high-profile celebrity investors.

The primary categories of investors backing cannabis beverage brands include:

• Venture Capital & Institutional Funds: Early-stage and cannabis-focused VC firms actively write checks for functional, low-dose, and non-alcoholic cannabis or hemp-derived social tonics. Notable names active in this space include:
  • Left Lane Capital (known for backing beverage alternatives like Willie's Remedy).
  • Thomas Green Equities and Sands Lane (frequent investors across cannabis beverage ecosystems).
  • Smaller emerging seed funds and institutional players backing hemp-derived Delta-9 drink startups like Cali Sober, Flowerboy , and Magic Cactus.
• Strategic Alcohol & Beverage Giants: Multinational beverage and alcohol corporations have historically made massive multi-million or multi-billion-dollar plays into the cannabis sector to position themselves for functional drink trends:
  • Constellation Brands (the maker of Corona beer) famously invested billions into Canopy Growth to pioneer cannabis-infused beverage development.
  • Traditional craft-beer and spirits acquirers like Tilray Brands have built out massive beverage portfolios (acquiring companies like SweetWater Brewing, Montauk Brewing, and Breckenridge Distillery) to bridge the gap into THC-infused and mainstream lifestyle drinks.
• Celebrity and Cultural Power-Players: Micro-dosed social tonics (marketed as alcohol replacements) have attracted heavy backing from celebrity wellness figures, athletes, and entertainers looking to promote sober-curious alternatives. For example, the micro-dosed beverage brand *Cann * raised prominent rounds backed by:
  • Gwyneth Paltrow
  • Rebel Wilson
  • Kate Hudson
  • Rosario Dawson
  • Baron Davis

A mix of institutional venture capital (VC) firms, mainstream consumer-focused funds, strategic cannabis operators, and celebrity investors actively back cannabis and hemp-derived THC beverage brands. Because beverages are viewed as a key bridge to mainstream, alcohol-alternative social consumption, they attract distinct types of capital compared to traditional plant-touching cultivation.

Prominent investors and the types of portfolios backing the cannabis beverage space include:

• Consumer and Venture Capital Funds: Early-stage and growth-tier VC firms focusing on consumer packaged goods (CPG) frequently back leading low-dose beverage brands like Cann . Noteworthy backers include:
  • Pace Capital
  • Brighton Park Capital
• Strategic Multi-State Operators (MSOs): Large regulated cannabis corporations often invest in or form joint ventures/distribution partnerships with beverage labels to scale production across state lines. For instance, Green Thumb Industries (GTI) participated in major financing rounds for micro-dosed tonic maker Cann.
• Celebrity and Cultural Investors: Lifestyle, wellness, and entertainment figures frequently inject capital and serve as brand evangelists for social tonics and THC seltzers, aiming to position them as direct replacements for alcohol. High-profile individual investors in brands like Cann include:
  • Gwyneth Paltrow
  • Kate Hudson
  • Rebel Wilson
  • Rosario Dawson (who also serves as a board member)
  • Nina Dobrev
  • Adam Devine
• Niche & Emerging Hemp-Specific Funds: With the rapid rise of hemp-derived Delta-9 THC beverages sold in mainstream channels (grocers, bars, and liquor stores outside traditional dispensaries), smaller specialized venture funds and angel investors have targeted emerging beverage startups (such as Cali Sober, Flowerboy , and Magic Cactus ) to bypass localized state-by-state dispensary gridlock.

If you mean investors actively backing cannabis/THC beverage brands, there are a handful worth putting on a target list. The market has increasingly attracted investors with CPG, beverage, alcohol, and cannabis experience rather than only traditional cannabis VCs.

Investors with relevant beverage deals

• Left Lane Capital — Led the $15M Series A for Willie’s Remedy+ in February 2026, making it one of the clearest current examples of a mainstream growth investor backing a THC beverage brand.
• Second Sight Ventures — Participated alongside Left Lane in Willie’s Remedy+, so it has direct recent THC-beverage exposure.
• Imaginary Ventures — An early institutional backer of Cann, the cannabis social-tonic brand; Cann raised $27M in its Series A after a $5M seed.
• InvestBev — Particularly interesting because it specializes in adult beverage investing. It made a multi-million-dollar investment in Cann in 2022.
• Tonic Ventures — Invested in Magic Cactus, a hemp-derived THC beverage company, as part of its $1.5M round. Its portfolio also includes beverage brands such as Olipop and Slate Milk.
• Listen Ventures — Co-invested in Magic Cactus and has a broader consumer/functional-products thesis, making it potentially relevant for brands positioned at the intersection of THC and wellness.
• AMASS Brands Group — A strategic beverage investor rather than a conventional VC. In 2026 it entered a SAFE investment in Afterdream, securing rights to at least 15.67% of the hemp-derived THC beverage company.
• Canopy Growth — Historically important as a strategic cannabis investor; it took a minority ownership position in Houseplant and helped develop its cannabis brand.

The investors I'd prioritize

If you're raising for a cannabis beverage brand today, I'd divide the target list into three buckets:

1. Consumer/CPG VCs: Imaginary Ventures, Listen Ventures, Tonic Ventures
2. Beverage/alcohol specialists: InvestBev and strategic beverage platforms such as AMASS
3. Growth investors: Left Lane Capital and similar firms once you have meaningful revenue and retail traction

There's also a useful signal in the recent deals: investors increasingly want a beverage brand that looks like a great CPG company first and a cannabis company second—strong velocity, repeat purchase, distribution, differentiated formulation and a credible regulatory strategy.

If you're looking for investors for your own cannabis beverage company, I can also build you a 20–30 investor target list with fund size, typical check, stage, relevant portfolio companies, partner/contact, and why each is a fit.

The investment landscape for cannabis and hemp-derived THC beverage brands features a mix of dedicated venture capital firms, large multi-state cannabis operators (MSOs), traditional beverage giants, and high-profile celebrity backers.

The primary categories of investors backing cannabis beverage brands include:

• Venture Capital & Specialized Funds: Early-stage and growth equity firms look closely at functional beverages as alcohol alternatives. For example, Imaginary Ventures led a major Series A round for top-selling THC beverage brand Cann , while drink-industry-focused Quench Ventures has strategically backed brands like Jeng.
• Multi-State Cannabis Operators (MSOs): Large licensed cannabis corporations often invest in or partner with beverage start-ups to secure distribution and manufacturing lanes. For instance, Green Thumb Industries (GTI) participated in funding rounds for Cann.
• Big Alcohol & Traditional Beverage Conglomerates: Major alcohol players have historically made massive bets on the cannabis-infused space to capture the non-alcoholic, social-relaxation market. Notable examples include Constellation Brands (which famously invested billions into Canopy Growth), Molson Coors (via its joint venture Truss with Hexo), and Anheuser-Busch InBev (which partnered with Tilray on non-alcoholic cannabis drinks). Craft-focused legacy brewers like The Boston Beer Company have also developed independent infused lines like TeaPot.
• A-List Celebrities and Cultural Influencers: Consumer-facing microdosed beverage brands rely heavily on celebrity angel investors for marketing and cultural traction. Cann boasts a massive roster of celebrity backers including Gwyneth Paltrow, Rebel Wilson, Kate Hudson, Baron Davis, Nina Dobrev, and Adam Devine.

Yes. The investor pool for cannabis beverages is broader than traditional cannabis VCs—it includes consumer/CPG funds, alcohol/beverage strategics, cannabis operators, and celebrity/entertainment investors.

Investors with demonstrated cannabis-beverage activity

• Imaginary Ventures — probably one of the clearest targets. It led Cann’s $5M seed and participated in its $27M Series A. Cann is one of the best-known low-dose THC beverage brands.
• Navy Capital — cannabis-focused investor that backed Cann early alongside Imaginary and Green Thumb Industries.
• Green Thumb Industries / GTI Capital — major cannabis operator that invested in Cann; its strategic value is particularly relevant for regulated THC brands.
• CAVU Consumer Partners — led Recess's $30M Series B. Recess began as a CBD beverage and has since expanded into functional/relaxation beverages, making CAVU particularly interesting for cannabis-adjacent consumer brands.
• Torch Capital — participated in Recess's Series B and has a strong consumer/brand orientation.
• Rocana, Midnight Ventures, Doehler Ventures, KAS Venture Partners and Vanquish — also participated in Recess's $30M round.
• Listen Ventures — backed Magic Cactus with $2M; Magic Cactus is a hemp-derived THC/CBD beverage brand.
• Global Founders Capital and JM10 Partners — participated in Cann's early financing.
• Brian Spaly — individual investor in Cann's seed round.
• Founders of Boston Beer Co. — among the investors in Uncle Arnie's, demonstrating interest from established beverage entrepreneurs.

Strategic/corporate money

There's also a second group worth targeting if you're building a cannabis beverage company: large beverage and alcohol companies. Constellation Brands, Molson Coors, Canopy Growth, Lagunitas and others have made investments or explored cannabis beverages historically.

More recently, Constellation Brands, Pernod Ricard and Tilray have been looking at the THC-beverage opportunity as alcohol consumption patterns change.

Celebrity/strategic angels

Cann has also attracted a remarkably large celebrity-investor group, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Rosario Dawson, Kate Hudson, Nina Dobrev, Rebel Wilson, Ruby Rose and Baron Davis.

These aren't necessarily the best institutional leads, but they demonstrate that cannabis beverages can attract mainstream consumer-brand investors rather than only cannabis specialists.

If you're raising for a cannabis beverage brand

I'd segment the target list roughly like this:

1. Consumer/CPG VC: Imaginary, CAVU, Torch, Listen
2. Cannabis VC/strategic: Navy Capital, GTI Capital
3. Beverage executives/strategics: Boston Beer alumni, alcohol/beverage corporates
4. Brand-building angels: founders/operators from successful beverage, alcohol, wellness and CPG companies
5. Celebrity/entertainment: useful for distribution, awareness and partnerships, but generally better as a supplement to an institutional lead

One important distinction: hemp-derived THC beverages and state-licensed marijuana beverages are now very different investment propositions, particularly because of the evolving federal rules around intoxicating hemp products.

If you're asking because you're fundraising for a cannabis beverage startup, I can also build you a target list of 30–50 specific investors, with check size, stage, portfolio, geography, and whether they've invested in THC/CBD beverages.

The investor ecosystem backing cannabis and hemp-infused beverage brands spans dedicated cannabis venture capital firms, mainstream consumer packaged goods (CPG) funds, strategic multi-state operators (MSOs), and celebrity angels. Because regulations vary heavily by jurisdiction (and federal prohibition in the U.S. restricts traditional institutional banking), funding sources are uniquely diversified.

1. Dedicated Cannabis & CPG Venture Capital Firms

• Imaginary Ventures: Known for backing high-growth consumer brands, they led major funding rounds (like the $27M Series A) for market-leading cannabis beverage brand Cann.
• Quench Ventures: A beverage-focused VC firm that invests directly in functional and non-alcoholic alternatives, including strategic investments in hemp-derived THC drink brands like Jeng.
• Merida Capital Holdings: A prominent private equity firm targeting fundamental growth drivers in the cannabis and hemp ecosystems.
• Entourage Effect Capital: A specialized venture capital firm focusing heavily on innovation and brand building across the legal cannabis supply chain.
• Casa Verde Capital: Co-founded by Snoop Dogg, this is one of the most active venture capital funds operating in the broader cannabis landscape.
• Altitude Investment Management & Green Acre Capital: Institutional cannabis-focused funds that frequently participate in early-to-growth-stage ingestibles and alternative consumption formats.

2. Strategic MSOs and Industry Giants

• Green Thumb Industries (GTI): One of the largest U.S. multi-state cannabis operators, GTI has actively participated as a strategic corporate investor in scaling infused-beverage pioneers like Cann to help navigate state-by-state manufacturing and distribution.
• Traditional Beverage & Alcohol Conglomerates: Major multinational beer, wine, and spirits corporations (from North America, Europe, and Asia) often participate through corporate venture arms, joint ventures, or minority stakes to hedge against shifting consumer preferences toward social microdosed THC beverages.

3. Celebrity and Angel Investors

Cannabis beverages have heavily leaned into mainstream social normalization, attracting high-profile celebrity backers who double as brand marketers. For instance, Cann’s funding rounds have included prominent cultural figures and actors such as:

• Rosario Dawson
• Nina Dobrev
• Adam Devine
• Zoey Deutch

Yes. There’s a growing group of investors specifically interested in cannabis/THC beverages, particularly brands positioned as alternatives to alcohol or as functional/adult beverages.

Notable investors with actual cannabis-beverage exposure

• Imaginary Ventures — One of the clearest VC examples. It invested in Cann, the microdosed THC beverage brand, from its seed round through the $27M Series A.
• InvestBev — Beverage-focused private equity firm that made a multi-million-dollar investment in Cann through InvestBev Fund III. This is particularly relevant because InvestBev focuses specifically on adult beverages.
• Left Lane Capital — Led the $15M Series A for Willie's Remedy+ in February 2026, alongside Second Sight Ventures.
• Second Sight Ventures — Participated in the Willie's Remedy+ Series A and is therefore another current investor with direct THC-beverage exposure.
• AMASS Brands Group — Made a 2026 SAFE investment in Afterdream, a hemp-derived THC beverage brand, securing rights to at least 15.67% ownership on a fully diluted basis.
• Celebrity/consumer investors — Cann has attracted a substantial roster including Gwyneth Paltrow, Nina Dobrev, Adam Devine, Rosario Dawson, Zoey Deutch, Rebel Wilson, Darren Criss, Baron Davis, Tove Lo and Casey Neistat.

Strategic investors worth watching

There is also a second category: large beverage/alcohol/cannabis companies that invest in or acquire beverage brands rather than behaving like conventional VCs.

Historically, the sector has attracted companies including Constellation Brands, Canopy Growth, Molson Coors, Lagunitas and Cannacraft. SEC More recently, Organigram acquired Collective Project Beverages for up to roughly C$30M including potential earnouts, giving it a U.S. hemp-derived THC beverage platform.

If you're raising for a cannabis beverage brand

I'd divide your investor target list into four buckets:

1. Beverage-focused PE — InvestBev is an obvious example.
2. Consumer/CPG VCs — Imaginary Ventures is a strong precedent.
3. Growth-stage consumer VCs — Left Lane is particularly interesting for a brand with meaningful traction.
4. Strategic beverage/cannabis companies — potentially valuable for distribution, manufacturing and retail relationships in addition to capital.

If you tell me your stage (pre-revenue / <$1M / $1–5M / $5M+ revenue), whether it's hemp-derived or state-licensed marijuana THC, and how much you're raising, I can build you a shortlist of 20–30 investors that are actually plausible targets, including check size, stage, relevant portfolio companies, geography, and links to their investment/contact pages.

Yes. If you mean investors that have actually backed cannabis/THC beverage brands, rather than generic cannabis VCs, there’s a fairly identifiable group.

Investors worth targeting

• Imaginary Ventures — One of the strongest examples. It co-led Cann’s $5M seed and participated again in its $27M Series A. Its consumer-brand orientation makes it particularly relevant for beverage companies with a strong lifestyle/brand angle.
• InvestBev — Beverage-focused private equity. It made a multi-million-dollar investment in Cann and explicitly positioned cannabis beverages as part of its adult-beverage investment thesis.
• Left Lane Capital — Led the $15M Series A for Willie’s Remedy+ in February 2026, alongside Second Sight Ventures, to fund national retail expansion.
• Second Sight Ventures — Participated in the Willie’s Remedy+ Series A and is therefore a current example of institutional capital specifically entering THC beverages.
• JM10 Partners — Co-led Cann's $5M seed and had already built a cannabis portfolio, including Lord Jones.
• Navy Capital — Participated in Cann's seed round and has a broader cannabis investment focus.
• Global Founders Capital — Participated in Cann's seed round; it was reportedly its first cannabis investment.
• Cresco Capital — Also participated in Cann's seed round.
• AMASS Brands Group — A particularly interesting strategic investor today. In June 2026 it entered a SAFE investment in hemp-derived THC beverage brand Afterdream giving it rights to at least 15.67% ownership.
• Celebrity/strategic angels — Cann has attracted investors including Gwyneth Paltrow, Nina Dobrev, Adam Devine, Zoey Deutch, Rosario Dawson, Sara Foster and others.

The investor profiles I'd prioritize

If you're raising for a cannabis beverage brand, I'd divide the target list into four buckets:

One important wrinkle right now: hemp-derived intoxicating THC beverages face a major U.S. regulatory cliff in November 2026, following the federal hemp-definition change passed in late 2025. That makes the distinction between a state-licensed marijuana beverage, a hemp-derived THC beverage, and a CBD/non-intoxicating beverage extremely important when approaching investors.

If you're asking because you're fundraising for a cannabis beverage startup, I can also build you a target list of ~30 investors, ranked by check size, stage, beverage investments, geography, and likelihood of investing in 2026, including contact/pitch-deck routes.

The investment landscape backing cannabis and hemp-derived beverage brands is a mix of specialized cannabis venture capital firms, major multi-state operators (MSOs), strategic alcohol/beverage players, and high-profile angel investors.

The primary categories of investors active in the cannabis beverage space include:

1. Dedicated Cannabis Venture Capital & Private Equity Funds

Because generalist mainstream CPG/food-and-beverage venture funds historically sat on the sidelines due to federal regulatory constraints, dedicated cannabis-focused funds have done the heavy lifting for early- and growth-stage rounds.

• Casa Verde Capital: Co-founded by Karan Wadhera and famously associated with Snoop Dogg, Casa Verde is one of the most prominent cannabis-focused VC firms, investing broadly across the cannabis consumer ecosystem and tech infrastructure.
• Green Acre Capital: A dedicated private cannabis investment fund that has historically backed emerging consumer brands and ancillary cannabis plays.
• Gotham Green Partners: A private equity firm focused heavily on institutional investments and capital allocation across the cannabis value chain.

2. Strategic Multi-State Operators (MSOs) & Canadian Licensed Producers (LPs)

Large plant-touching operators look to beverage brands as a key vehicle for mainstream consumer adoption. They frequently provide balance-sheet capital, distribution partnerships, or outright acquisitions.

• Green Thumb Industries (GTI): Has strategically backed and partnered with leading low-dose beverage brands like Cann to help expand production and distribution footprints.
• Tilray Brands / Canopy Growth: Major Canadian LP players that developed their own in-house cannabis drink lines (such as Tilray’s XMG and Little Victory ) while keeping a close eye on strategic investments and US market entry.

3. Celebrity and Angel Investors

For lifestyle-forward and low-dose social tonics (which mimic the "sessionable" nature of alcohol), celebrity and cultural backing play a massive role in early capital-raising and brand awareness.

• High-profile beverage brands like Cann attracted early funding rounds featuring celebrity investors such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Rebel Wilson, Ruby Rose, and Ryan Seacrest , leveraging their networks for both capital and marketing strategy.

4. Emerging Hemp-Specific & Micro-Funds

With the legal rise of hemp-derived Delta-9 THC beverages (which can be sold in standard retail and direct-to-consumer channels outside of traditional state-licensed dispensaries), smaller specialized seed funds and angel syndicates have increasingly stepped in to back sessionable drink startups (e.g., brands like Wynk, Cali Sober, Magic Cactus , and Flowerboy).