Archive for the ‘wine’ Category
Caricatures
Holy smokes, change really is afoot at TTB. I was startled to see these wine labels recently, with various and sundry famous politicians emblazoned all upon them, and not in the most flattering light. I suppose there is some extra latitude for parody- or caricature-type speech, and there certainly is or ought to be latitude as to political speech. But often in the past, TTB has disallowed presidentially-oriented labels. Just two years ago, the line was drawn here, as to President Obama, and this one seemed to go too far.
The abstraction, in these caricatures, seems to help, as does the absence of the full names. The Horizon Cellars Winery, of Siler City, North Carolina has a large series of the labels depicted above. We already pointed to various labels with Former President George Bush and Sarah Palin in the past, so today we elected to highlight Former Vice President Dick Cheney, President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and Former President Bill Clinton.
But there are other reasons to revel in these labels. Any discussion of Joe Biden would be embarrassingly remiss without a fond recollection of that storied day when Joe Biden washed his Trans Am, in cutoffs and no shirt, out back behind the White House.
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famous, legally interesting/controversial, policy, political, speech
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Big Nose Kate’s
We thought the Rumpmeister dress was pretty short, until we saw this attire (or lack thereof). The Cabernet label, on the left, pretty much speaks for itself. The Chardonnay label has more words, and they are no less risque than the images on the Cabernet label, though they are a bit more covered. The semi-covered words say:
MEN – NO SHIRT – NO SERVICE
WOMEN – NO SHIRT – FREE BEER
Beyond that, the verbiage on the right side says:
LIQUOR – IN THE – FRONT
POKER – IN THE – REAR
We are not sure whether it’s more funny, amusing, witty, or embarrassing. It’s a little difficult to believe these went right through, way back in 2004.
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Panties on the Ground
First it was just the pants on the ground. Now there is a profusion of panties on the ground. And once again, alcohol beverages are not far from the root of the problem. Way back in April of 2009 we first uncovered this problem, and there is no sign of abatement in the time since then.
Panty Dropper is Late Harvest Zinfandel, produced and bottled by Christies of Sonoma, Inc. Liquid Panty Remover is Cherry and Raspberry Fruit Wine, produced and bottled by Alto Vineyards, of Alto Pass, Illinois.
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Age Range on Wines
This Malvira red wine happens to mention that the Barbera d’Alba blend is “aged in French Oak barriques … for 18-24 months.” Is there anything so troublesome about that? Maybe so. On a similar label (with a different age range), the above rejection shows that TTB would prefer that wine labels show the actual amount of age, rather than a range or guesstimate.
TTB did not cite any specific authority in the rejection above, but 27 CFR 4.38(f) would make it hard for the importer to win this argument. It says:
(f) Additional information on labels. Labels may contain information other than the mandatory label information … if such information complies with the requirements … and does not conflict with, nor in any manner qualify statements required by this part. In addition, information which is truthful, accurate, and specific, and which is neither disparaging nor misleading may appear on wine labels.
The stated range (six months on one and two months on the other) may be accurate and non-disparaging, but it’s not especially specific.
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Squished Witch Red Table Wine
The upcoming Halloween holiday brings to mind candy and costumes and ghosts and ghouls and witches. This year, witches and witchcraft have enjoyed an additional autumnal limelight after tapes surfaced of U.S. Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell (R-DE) claiming to have dabbled in witchcraft while in high school.
Squished Witch, from Oz Winery of Wamego, Kansas, looks set to capitalize on the shared whimsy of this year’s Halloween and political seasons. The winery describes Squished Witch as a “fruity, semi-sweet Ives Noir based red.” Like Squished Witch, most of the three-dozen wines in the Oz Winery stable boast some obvious connection to the classic film The Wizard of Oz, including I’ve Got You My Pretty, The Lion’s Courage, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Scarecrow, Flying Monkey, and I’m Melting Merlot.
The Squished Witch label is home to at least one interesting legal issue. If you were looking for the class/type description and/or alcohol content and weren’t having any luck, note the smallish cursive words “Red Table Wine” nestled in a fold in the land above the fanciful name. I missed them at first, second, and third glance. Oz also has Drunken Munchkin, and it’s rare to have a reference to intoxication on a wine label.
The Witch label reminds me that a friend used to describe the Wicked Witch of the West as a misunderstood woman who was just “mad because someone dropped a house on her sister.”
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