(Forbes) - E-40 is a Bay Area rap legend and the undisputed godfather of the hyphy movement. But he’s also currently at the helm of an intriguing alcohol and spirits empire, one that just added the eponymous “E-40 Malt Liquor” to its portfolio.

Available in both the traditional 40 ounce glass bottle and a 24 oz tall can, E-40 (legal name Earl Stevens) fancies his malt liquor with a touch of honey to be more of a “craft malt liquor.”

“Forget everything you think you know about malt liquor,” Stevens says. “If you were to do a blind taste test and you poured my beer next to a craft beer or two, nobody would know that mine was a malt liquor. They’d think that it’s a good craft beer…and it’s strong, too!”

It is indeed a strong beer, checking in at 10% ABV. The honey flavor is subtly pronounced and smooths out the funky aftertaste typical of malt liquor brands like Mickey’s and Olde English 800. There’s a distinct quality in the flavor of the brew, which is brewed by Stevens’ company Interactions and Transactions at a contract facility in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

Stevens has teamed up with Southern Wine & Spirits to distribute the beer, which had purchase orders for 50,000 cases in California when the product launched in late January. “They’re the best distributor in the world,” Stevens says, as he details how he first got in touch with Southern via a previous E-40 branded alcohol venture.

The small empire that Vallejo, CA’s most famous rapper is building, currently features the Earl Stevens Selections line of wines, highlighted by a Mangoscato, along with a Moscato and a Cabernet Sauvignon/Zinfandel red blend. Also, the E-40 Sluricane, which is a pre-mixed riff on the New Orleans classic hurricane (with a Blue Lagoon cocktail flavored sluricane on deck) and now, the beer.

With a $5.95 sticker price on the 40 oz bottle, the E-40 beer represents an attempt to carve out a new category of high-end malt liquor. We had a chance to speak to Stevens about his vision for the beer, how the genesis of the product mirrors his storied rap career and how E-40 malt liquor is merely the next step in a growing line of beer, wine and spirits for Stevens.