• EPS Rises 20% in 4th Quarter on Double-Digit Sales Growth
• Free Cash Flow Reaches $437 Million for 2003
• Company Targeting to Comfortably Achieve Double-Digit EPS Growth Before Charges/Gains in 2004

Lincolnshire, IL, January 23, 2004 - Fortune Brands, Inc. (NYSE: FO) today reported record results for the fourth quarter and full year 2003. The company's quarterly results benefited from broad-based share gains, supply chain efficiencies, high-return acquisitions and favorable foreign exchange.

"Fortune Brands finished another excellent year with strong momentum as each of our businesses performed at or above our expectations in the fourth quarter," said Fortune Brands chairman & CEO Norm Wesley. "Robust demand in the quarter for brands like Aristokraft, Omega, Moen, Master Lock, Titleist, Kensington and our super-premium spirits drove Fortune Brands' strongest sales growth of the year. In all, 2003 was a year of broad-based success that extended Fortune Brands' track record of consistently strong performance and that significantly surpassed the goals we set a year ago."

For the fourth quarter:

• Net income increased 19% to $156 million, and diluted earnings per share were $1.03, up 20% from $0.86 in the year-ago quarter.
• Diluted EPS before charges/gains was $1.07, up 18% from $0.91, and 4 cents above the mean of Wall Street securities analysts' estimates.
• Net sales were $1.66 billion, up 16%. Acquisitions benefited sales by approximately 4% and favorable foreign exchange benefited sales by about 3%.
• Operating income was $266 million, up 19%. Operating income benefited from strong underlying performance, acquisitions and favorable foreign exchange.

For the full year:

• Net income grew 10% to $579 million, and diluted earnings per share were $3.86, up 13% from $3.41 a year ago.
• Diluted EPS before charges/gains was $3.79, up 19% from $3.19.
• Net sales were $6.21 billion, up 9.5%. Acquisitions/divestitures benefited sales by approximately 2.5% and favorable foreign exchange benefited sales by about 2%.
• Operating income was $918 million, up 17%.
• Free cash flow was $437 million after dividends and capital expenditures.
• Return on equity was 24%.
• Return on invested capital was 16.6%.
• Share repurchases totaled 4.1 million shares.

"We achieved success by continuing to invest in our leading consumer brands to grow faster than our markets," Wesley added. "We gained share with industry-leading new products and expanded customer relationships. We supplemented our growth initiatives with high-return acquisitions. Our operating performance also generated substantial free cash flow that exceeded our targets and enabled us to drive shareholder value even higher."

Outlook: Strong Momentum for 2004

"As we look to 2004, we are excited about our prospects to drive sustained growth," Wesley said. "We're carrying strong momentum into a year in which we'll continue to benefit from building our brands, innovative new products, the acquisition of Therma-Tru, and share-gain initiatives like the roll-out of cabinet lines at major home center chains.

"For the first quarter and for the full year 2004, we're targeting to comfortably achieve our long-term goal of double-digit growth in diluted EPS before charges/gains. We're also expecting continued improvement in returns."

Fortune Brands, Inc. is a $6 billion leading consumer brands company. Its operating companies have premier brands and leading market positions in home and hardware products, spirits and wine, golf equipment and office products. Home and hardware brands include Moen faucets, Aristokraft, Schrock, Diamond and Omega cabinets, Therma-Tru door systems, Master Lock padlocks and Waterloo tool storage sold by units of Fortune Brands Home & Hardware, Inc. Major spirits and wine brands sold by units of Jim Beam Brands Worldwide, Inc. include Jim Beam and Knob Creek bourbons, DeKuyper cordials, The Dalmore single malt Scotch, Vox vodka and Geyser Peak and Wild Horse wines. Acushnet Company's golf brands include Titleist, Cobra and FootJoy. Office brands include Swingline, Wilson Jones, Kensington and Day-Timer sold by units of ACCO World Corporation. Fortune Brands, headquartered in Lincolnshire, Illinois, is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FO and is included in the S&P 500 Index.

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This press release contains statements relating to future results, which are forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Readers are cautioned that these forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to changes in general economic conditions, foreign exchange rate fluctuations, changes in interest rates, returns on pension assets, competitive product and pricing pressures, trade consolidations, the impact of excise tax increases with respect to distilled spirits, regulatory developments, the uncertainties of litigation, changes in golf equipment regulatory standards, the impact of weather, particularly on the home products and golf brand groups, expenses and disruptions related to shifts in manufacturing to different locations and sources, changes in commodity costs, the impact of weak conditions in the leisure travel industry on our golf and spirits and wine businesses, as well as other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

This press release presents measures not derived in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, including earnings per share before charges/gains, free cash flow and operating income before charges. Such measures should not be considered substitutes for any measures derived in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and may also be inconsistent with similar measures presented by other companies. Reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to the most nearly comparable GAAP measures, if applicable, is presented in the attached pages.