Descendant of Brown-Forman's founder put in charge of historic Old Forester bourbon brand

A member of the family that founded liquor producer Brown-Forman Corp. is taking charge of Old Forester bourbon, the company's oldest brand.

The company said Tuesday that Campbell Brown — a fifth-generation descendant of company founder George Garvin Brown — will become president of Old Forester, effective May 1. The long-struggling brand has shown signs of life, with sales up nearly 16 percent to 112,000 cases in 2014.

Campbell Brown's promotion is another sign the company best known for its powerhouse Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey brand wants to rejuvenate the Old Forester brand that originated in 1870.

Old Forester sales peaked at 1 million cases in 1971 and 1972, but the brand went into a long tailspin. Sales slumped to 93,000 cases in 2012.