Seagram’s Joseph J Fisch dies
The former president of Joseph E Seagram & Sons and founder of United States Beverage, Joseph J Fisch Jr, has died aged 75.
Fisch worked in the alcohol industry for more than 50 years, beginning at the now defunct Joseph E Seagram & Sons, where he became the company’s youngest regional vice president and managed the firm’s speciality import brands company.
He later managed the eastern division of The Seagram Distillers Company and the central division of the House of Seagram. In 1993, he became president of the Seagram Beverage Company.
He subsequently departed the company to found United States Beverage in 1997. The company is now the number-one independent beer importer in the US and will expand into spirits in autumn this year.
Seagram’s portfolio, which included Captain Morgan rum, 7 Crown and Chivas Regal, was bought by Pernod Ricard and Diageo in 2000. In 2018, the latter sold some of these brands – including Canadian whisky brand Seagram’s – to Sazerac as part of a US$550 million deal.
Fisch stepped back from the role of CEO in 2023, with his son, Justin, taking over.
A memorial will be held on 13 June at 10.30 am at St Thomas More Church in Darien, Connecticut.
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