NEW NAME, NEW BOTTLE, NEW FOLLOWING

El Tesoro de Don Felipe® Platinum Redefining Tequila

Stereotypically served with a lime chaser or in a salt-rimmed margarita glass, tequila has ascended to decidedly new quarters. Cradled in the belly of a snifter or served as the flavorful base of today’s cocktails, the rich flavor and versatility of ultra-premium tequila is being discovered at record pace. To celebrate its evolution and to realign itself with today’s ultra-premium tequila consumer, El Tesoro de Don Felipe® is appropriately renaming its Silver tequila expression El Tesoro Platinum™.

Debuting this spring, the newly renamed, freshly bottled El Tesoro Platinum reflects its rich pedigree. Sipped and savored by connoisseurs worldwide, the award-winning flavor portfolio of El Tesoro Platinum is being embraced by today’s cocktail culture. Ultra-premium tequilas are joining the ranks high-end vodkas as the mixable spirit of choice at martini clubs, trendy lounges and tequila bars worldwide.

The El Tesoro Platinum Cosmo is the latest cocktail to hit the spirit scene. Putting a new spin on the standard cosmopolitan, the El Tesoro Platinum Cosmo uses tequila in the place of vodka. It creates a surprisingly smooth, elegant taste and gives the old cosmopolitan new life.

The El Tesoro Platinum Cosmo
1 part El Tesoro Platinum Tequila
1/2 part Cointreau®
2 parts cranberry juice
1/2 part fresh lime juice

Combine in shaker and shake. Pour into a chilled martini glass and garnish with a twist of lime.

Supported by a multi-million-dollar advertising campaign, El Tesoro Platinum and the El Tesoro Platinum Cosmo will continue to expand the category’s appeal in 2003. The new advertising campaign targeting woman focuses on the versatility, mixability and contemporary image of tequila through the signature style of Erwin Olaf, award-winning Dutch photographer. His icy, crisp, clean photography reflects the refreshing outlook and characteristics of the El Tesoro Platinum brand.

With the addition of El Tesoro Platinum, the entire El Tesoro Tequila Collection is being reintroduced to the market in a new package reflective of its stature. Encased in thick glass with diamond-cut edges, the elegant new El Tesoro bottle is embossed with an agave plant and the new treasure coin brand logo. The brand’s unique wood cork closure features a treasure coin inset bearing the signature of the Master Distiller of El Tesoro, Don Felipe. The stunning new bottle previews the treasure and elegance of the spirit inside.

“The new name and sophisticated new packaging reflect the ultra-premium status of the El Tesoro Platinum brand and the refined taste of the brand’s expanding consumer base,” said Kathleen DiBenedetto, director of super-premium brands, Jim Beam Brands Co. “As consumers rediscover the tequila category, the stand-alone flavor and mixability of El Tesoro Platinum continue to garner increased awareness as consumers realize tequila is more than margaritas.”

The El Tesoro Collection is composed of El Tesoro Platinum, El Tesoro Reposado, El Tesoro Añejo and Paradiso Añejo. Distilled at La Alteña Distillery, El Tesoro is double-distilled to 80 proof from 100-percent estate-grown blue agave and never watered down. Following time-honored distillation methods, Master Distiller Don Felipe Camarena and his son, Carlos, remain faithful to traditional distilling techniques. La Alteña is the only tequila distillery that still follows the traditional production techniques. The last distillery of its kind, La Alteña Distillery is located in the heart of Mexico’s mountainous region of Jalisco.

Jim Beam Brands Co. is an operating company of Jim Beam Brands Worldwide, Inc., an international distilled spirits and fine wines company that manufactures and markets more than 80 brands in 160 countries. Jim Beam Brands Worldwide, Inc. has leadership positions in bourbon, with Jim Beam® and Jim Beam ® Black, the number one selling bourbon worldwide; Knob Creek® bourbon and The Small Batch Bourbon Collection®; and cordials, with DeKuyper®, the number one cordial line in the United States. In addition to spirits, Jim Beam Brands Worldwide, Inc. portfolio includes Geyser Peak ® and Canyon Road®. A joint venture between Jim Beam Brands Co. and The Absolut Spirits Company, Incorporated, called Future Brands LLC, provides sales and distribution services in the United States for the company’s spirits and wine brands. Jim Beam Brands Worldwide, Inc. is part of Fortune Brands, Inc. (NYSE:FO), the consumer products company.