Soon To Be Big In Japan, Jim Beam's Roots To Stay In Kentucky

In a $16 billion deal this week, Japanese beverage giant Suntory announced it plans to purchase Beam Inc., the maker of Jim Beam bourbon and the owner of other popular bourbon brands like Maker's Mark. Those and most other bourbons are made in Kentucky, and the deal has some hoping the drink's growth in the global market won't come at the expense of its uniquely Kentucky heritage. For more than a century, Suntory has been in the beer and spirits industry in Japan, but what many Americans think of when they hear the name is the scene from the 2003 film Lost in Translation , in which Bill Murray plays an actor who goes to Tokyo to shoot a whiskey commercial. "For relaxing times, make it Suntory time," Murray's character says coolly into the camera. If the deal is approved by shareholders as expected, the name Suntory is likely to become more familiar in the U.S. in the months ahead. The popularity of bourbon has exploded in recent years, especially in Japan and other Asian markets. The