New Zealand’s Biggest Bartender Competition Gets Underway

New Zealand’s Biggest Bartender Competition Gets Underway

Auckland, 17 August 2012 – Beam Inc. (NYSE: BEAM), a leading global premium spirits company, today announced that the New Zealand Beam Bar Legend competition has become the biggest bartender competition in New Zealand history with 370 entries.

Bartenders from across the country submitted their entry online to compete in the competition, and the winner will be crowned New Zealand’s very first Beam Bar Legend, walking away with a prize pack valued at over $25,000.

The prize pack includes an all expenses paid trip to a distillery of their choice (including a choice of Kentucky, Canada, Caribbean, France, Scotland), an expense card valued at up to $10,000 ($200 per week) and a $5,000 staff party for their bar.

Over the next few days, Beam (NZ) will select 200 bartenders to go through to the next round where they will be asked to complete an online bar exam. Bartenders will be asked to answer 45 questions that will not only test their general bar skills, but will also test their etiquette and portfolio knowledge.

Beam Marketing Director, Rene Bros, is looking forward to hosting this unique event.

“The thing that sets a great bartender apart is their charisma and ability to create a fantastic atmosphere in their workplace, not just who can make the best cocktail. We are looking forward to finding the person who has the whole package,” he said.

“We are overwhelmed at the amount of entries we have received over the past few weeks and it will be an interesting next few days for us,” he added.

The selected 200 bartenders will have until Friday 24th August to complete the exam with the top 30 scores going through to the next stage. The semi-finalists will be contacted on August 30, and semi-finals will be held in September in three different regions across the country. The selected eight finalists will then be invited to participate in the grand final to be held in Auckland in early October.

Beam (NZ) will visit three regions based on the selected entrants. The selected semi-finalists will be required to attend at their own expense. If a semi-finalist is unable to attend, the next best entrant from the first two rounds will be selected in their place.

The grand finalists will have an all expenses paid trip to Auckland to compete for the prize pack, valued over $25,000.

There will be three judges for the grand finals plus some guest judges for particular components of the final competition. The judging panel will be confirmed closer to the announcement of the semi-finalists.

The expense card will be credited with $200 every week for 52 weeks.

About Beam Inc.
As one of the world’s leading premium spirits companies, Beam Inc. is Crafting the Spirits that Stir the World. Consumers from all corners of the globe call for the company’s brands, including Jim Beam Bourbon, Maker's Mark Bourbon, Sauza Tequila, Pinnacle Vodka, Canadian Club Whisky, Courvoisier Cognac, Teacher's Scotch Whisky, Cruzan Rum, Hornitos Tequila, Knob Creek Bourbon, Laphroaig Scotch Whisky, Kilbeggan Irish Whiskey, EFFEN Vodka, Pucker Flavored Vodka, Larios Gin, Whisky DYC, DeKuyper Cordials, and Skinnygirl Cocktails. Beam is focused on delivering superior performance with its unique combination of scale with agility and a strategy of Creating Famous Brands, Building Winning Markets and Fueling Our Growth. Beam and its 3,200 passionate associates worldwide generated 2011 sales of $2.8 billion, volume of 34 million 9-liter cases and some of the industry’s fastest growing innovations. Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, Beam is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BEAM and is included in the S&P 500 Index and the MSCI World Index. For more information on Beam, its brands, and its commitment to social responsibility, please visit www.beamglobal.com and www.drinksmart.com

ENDS

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