Bermuda-based drinks giant Bacardi Ltd. is offering no comment over newspaper reports that it may join a bidding war for UK spirits company Allied Domecq PLC.

Allied's brands include Beefeater gin, Canadian Club whiskey, Stolichnaya vodka and Kahlua liqueur.

Last week French drinks group Pernod Ricard SA in partnership with US-based Fortune brands offered Allied $14.1 billion. If approved by shareholders, the combined firm would become the second-largest liquor company in the world behind Diageo PLC.

However rumours circulated on the weekend that several other companies including Bacardi were interested in countering the offer.

Yesterday, US-based Constellation Brands confirmed it had hired Merrill Lynch & Co. and N.M. Rothschild & Sons Ltd. to advise it on a possible counter-offer for the UK spirits company.

Constellation said in a statement that at this early stage it was evaluating its options with "a number of potential partners , and there is no certainty that this process will lead to an approach being made to the company."

Constellation did not name its possible partners however weekend newspaper reports suggested Constellation could partner with the US group Brown-Forman Corp. and privately owned Bacardi in a bid.

The only official coming from the Bermuda-based company yesterday however was a no comment.

"As always Bacardi has a long standing policy to not comment on industry rumours or speculation," Bacardi Ltd. spokeswoman Patricia Neal told this newspaper.