Nick Rose, the finance director at Diageo, has said the company does not regard Absolut as a 'must have' brand.
He told a press conference Diageo was not prepared to abandon its financial discipline in order to attain it, reports Thomson Financial.
A number of other potential suitors have been linked with a possible buy-out of the company including Pernod Ricard, Fortune Brands and Bacardi.
Rose said Diageo is “taking an interest” in the current auction being conducted by the Swedish government and “is part of that process".
He added: “Because of the scale that Diageo already enjoys, particularly in North America where Absolut clearly has its largest volume, we don't feel we need this desperately.
“I don't think it's the kind of brand that is so strategically important to Diageo that we'd abandon our financial discipline and financial targets for.”
Vin & Sprit is valued at between $5 and $7 billion.
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