Jim Beam, is the worl's top selling brand of bourbon whiskey. Also included under the Jim Beam label are several other varieties of bourbon and whiskey, as well as a number of food products that include the bourbon as an ingredient. Beam is made in Clermont, Kentucky and traces its origins back to the distillery set up in 1795 by family patriarch Jacob Beam. Although the Beam / Noe family is still very much involved, Jim Beam Bourbon is owned by Beam Global Spirits & Wine, which is in turn owned by holding company Fortune Brands. The brand is named for James B. Beam (1864-1947), who ran his family's whiskey distillery from 1892 until 1944.