Each summer, heirs to the Jack Daniel’s fortune gather in [ADDRESS] for a family picnic. This year, Brown-Forman faces shrinking profits, a departing CEO, and a 60% share decline over five years. A crosstown rival has launched a $15 billion hostile takeover bid, threatening the family’s $11 billion collective wealth.

Shortly before the picnic, W.L. Lyons Brown III and his brother [PERSON_NAME] sent a scathing seven-page letter to over 130 relatives, accusing the board of “rewarding failure” as the stock fell from the mid-$70s to the mid-$20s. They compared the brand’s flavor proliferation to [PERSON_NAME] ice cream and criticized secrecy around merger talks.

The brothers, once pressured out of the company, now hold limited sway as fifth-generation heirs outside the family voting vehicle that controls 70% of shares. Meanwhile, Americans are drinking less whiskey, favoring canned cocktails and cannabis, prompting Brown-Forman to lay off 12% of staff.