Harvey R. Chaplin, Chairman & CEO of Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc., Honored with 2007 "Corporate Citizen Excellence Award" by Diageo North America

Business Wire, Oct 16, 2007

MIAMI -- Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc., the nation's leading wine and spirits distributor with a tradition of delivering the highest levels of service excellence since 1968, announced today that Harvey R. Chaplin, the company's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, has been presented with the "Corporate Citizen Excellence Award" for 2007 by Diageo North America, whose U.S. headquarters are located in Norwalk, Connecticut. This recognition was bestowed upon Mr. Chaplin at Diageo North America's Fourth Annual Golden Bar Awards--the beverage alcohol industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards--which took place at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 26, 2007.

In commending the numerous and longstanding charitable, educational and community-oriented donations made by Mr. Chaplin, Ivan Menezes, President and CEO, Diageo North America, in presenting the award, said: "This year we are taking the opportunity to recognize an individual who makes an exceptional difference in his community and our industry."

In remarks also made during the presentation of the award to Mr. Chaplin, Larry Schwartz, President, U.S. Spirits, Diageo North America, said: "From his earliest years of growing up in Brooklyn to the present, our honoree has understood the importance of educational opportunities for positive change. This is reflected not only in his company's commitment to educating and training employees and customer staff, but also to making positive and lasting investments in some of the country's most important hospitality schools."

Commenting on receiving the award, Mr. Chaplin said, "I am very grateful to Diageo and appreciate this recognition. Giving back to the community has always been a tradition at Southern, and I want to thank all of our Company's team members and commend them on their devotion to serving all our supplier partners and our customers with the highest levels of service and dedication. I would not have been in a position to accept this honor without their support over the years."

Wayne E. Chaplin, President and Chief Operating Officer of Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc., said: "I am extremely proud of the honor that my father has received from Diageo North America. On behalf of our entire Company, I want to salute his fine example of 'giving back' to the community and all of my dad's generous donations to charitable, educational, medical and many other worthy community-based organizations in both the United States and abroad."

About Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc.:

Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc., the nation's leading wine and spirits distributor with a tradition of delivering the highest levels of service excellence since 1968, currently conducts business in 28 states. The Company operates in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia. The Company has a strategic partnership with Alaska Distributors Co. of Seattle, Washington, called Southern Wine/Spirits West, a joint venture that has wine and spirits brokerage operations across the Northwest Control States of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. On a national basis, Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Inc. employs more than 10,000 team members. For more information, please visit our website at www.southernwine.com.

About Diageo:

Diageo (Dee-AH-Gee-O) is the world's leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wine and beer. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines. Diageo is a global company, trading in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (DGE). For more information about Diageo, its people, brands, and performance, visit us at http://www.diageo.com.

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