American Still Life

American Still Life tells the intertwined truestories of America’s favorite whiskey and the family dynasty thatproduces it to this very day. Jim Beam is the world’s top-sellingbourbon whiskey, with sales of over five million cases per year.Not a day has passed in the 207 years of Jim Beam’s existence whena Beam family member has not been master distiller. Dedicated toquality, and dedicated to the family legacy, the Beams haveshepherded their particularly American spirit to the top of theirindustry. And they’ve done it in an industry beset by challenges,from government regulation and prohibition, to changing consumertastes, to fierce new global competition. By creating a brand ofunparalleled quality and consistency, and by tying the success oftheir product with the good name of the family, the Beams haveestablished a lasting legacy as perhaps one of the greatest familybusiness dynasties in American history. Not just a simple historyof “America’s native spirit” (so named by an act of Congress in1964) or a simple family history, American Still Life is a story ofbusiness success based on quality and attention to detail, constantinnovation, revolutionary branding and advertising, and adaptationto the business environment.