{"id":148362,"date":"2026-05-13T10:11:31","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T14:11:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedailypour.com\/?p=148362"},"modified":"2026-05-13T10:11:31","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T14:11:31","slug":"brown-forman-turns-down-15-billion-takeover-offer-from-sazerac-per-reports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedailypour.com\/whiskey\/american-whiskey\/brown-forman-turns-down-15-billion-takeover-offer-from-sazerac-per-reports\/","title":{"rendered":"Brown-Forman Turns Down $15 Billion Takeover Offer from Sazerac, Per Reports"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Brown-Forman\"

(Photo: Brown-Forman)<\/p><\/div>\n

Jack Daniel’s owner Brown-Forman has turned down a $15 billion takeover bid from fellow US spirits firm Sazerac, per The Wall Street Journal<\/a>. The news comes less than two weeks after a similar offer from French spirits giant Pernod Ricard fell apart due to disagreements over family control.<\/p>\n

According to the WSJ, representatives from Brown-Forman informed Sazerac on Monday that it was rejecting its all-cash, $32-a-share offer. The proposal, news of which first broke in mid-April<\/a>, was reportedly backed by Wells Fargo and Apollo Global Management.<\/p>\n

Neither Brown-Forman nor Sazerac has publicly confirmed the report.<\/p>\n

If successful, the acquisition would have combined two of Louisville’s most prolific whiskey makers under the same roof. Brown-Forman was founded in 1870, and today owns whiskey staples including Jack Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve and Old Forester. Sazerac is best known for high-end bourbon icons Buffalo Trace, Blanton’s and Pappy Van Winkle, in addition to products like Fireball Cinnamon Whisky and Southern Comfort.<\/p>\n

For a time, it seemed the Jack Daniel’s owner had been wooed by a competing offer from Pernod Ricard. The companies confirmed that they were engaged in talks in March, describing the potential transaction as a “merger of equals.” According to an anonymous source quoted by Reuters<\/a>, the Brown family viewed Pernod as “the more prestigious acquirer.”<\/p>\n

The blockbuster deal fell apart at the end of April. A report from Semafor<\/a> suggested that the agreement collapsed not over price, but over family pride. Brown-Forman is largely controlled by the Brown family, which holds about 80% of the company’s voting power, while Pernod remains influenced by the Ricard family, which controls about 21% of the French conglomerate. The two parties reportedly couldn’t agree on how much influence each family would wield in the merged business.<\/p>\n

Throughout their months-long negotiations, both Pernod and Brown-Forman publicly addressed their potential merger. Sazerac, meanwhile, has yet to make a statement about its $15 billion offer, leaving much speculation in the hands of second-hand reports.<\/p>\n

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Jack Daniel’s owner Brown-Forman has turned down a $15 billion takeover bid from fellow US spirits firm Sazerac, per The Wall Street Journal. The news comes less than two weeks after a similar offer from French spirits giant Pernod Ricard fell apart due to disagreements over family control. According to the WSJ, representatives from Brown-Forman […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":129429,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[53,4116,1665],"class_list":["post-148362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-whiskey","tag-brown-forman","tag-industry-news","tag-sazerac"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t