Posts Tagged ‘legally interesting/controversial’
Kombucha Buzz Draws TTB Scrutiny
Mention the words “kombucha” and “buzz” in 2006 and you’d likely be referring to the drink’s growing popularity. But mention those same words today and you’d likely be talking about allegations the fermented tea drink contains a small but legally significant amount of alcohol.
As a recent TTB statement illustrates, the Bureau is working with FDA to ensure that kombucha sold as a non-alcoholic beverage—currently all kombucha—contains less than 0.5% alcohol. Some reports claim kombucha contains up to 3% alcohol. From the TTB release:
Kombucha is a fermented tea that is typically marketed as a non-alcoholic beverage, which means that it may contain a trace amount of alcohol, as long as the overall alcohol content is less than 0.5 percent alcohol by volume. In some cases these products have alcohol contents that significantly exceed 0.5 percent. At this point, TTB does not know how many brands might be affected by this issue.
[...]
TTB plans to take samples of kombucha products from the marketplace and test their alcohol content in order to determine if the products are labeled in compliance with Federal law. If TTB finds alcohol beverages that are not labeled in accordance with Federal law, we will take appropriate steps to bring them into compliance.
TTB’s kombucha inquiry received some added exposure after Whole Foods pulled the drink from its shelves at the suggestion of TTB and amid news reports suggesting troubled actress Lindsay Lohan’s consumption of the drink may have been responsible for setting off her court-ordered alcohol-monitoring ankle bracelet. Lohan, for her part, recently began serving a 90-day jail sentence a judge imposed on the actress earlier this summer as punishment for skipping mandatory alcohol-education courses.
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legally interesting/controversial, media buzz, policy
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Scurvy Re-Emerges
Now we learn that it’s not a good idea to name your beer after a disease, if you want to avoid controversy. Above is Tyranena Brewing Company’s Scurvy Ale Brewed with Orange Peel. TTB approved the label in 2008 and again in March of 2010.
Beernews.org reports that it has not been easy:
Tyranena Brewing finally got label approval late this past week but not without some headaches from the TTB first. Here is the lowdown on what went wrong.
The following is based on one or more Tyranena newsletters.
The Government Is Back On My Nerves And Throwing Off Our Whole Schedule. … Yesterday, we were informed that the TTB rejected our new label… apparently they thought the name “Scurvy” together with the government-mandated Statement of Composition “Ale Brewed With Orange Peel” implies a health benefit from the consumption of the product.
Our new six packs were one the verge of being printed and fortunately we were able to stop them. We will be submitting a variation of the label hoping to get it through… but it is unknown whether it will meet their criteria… or how long it will take them to approve it. … Now our whole schedule is in disarray.
Stacey has been communicating with our national trade group, the Brewers Association, who said the TTB guy (and apparently there is just one guy that approves all the labels!) is reasonable and suggested that we talk with him to see how things can go from here… which may just include having approval for our former Scurvy label (the Brewers Gone Wild! version) rescinded!
Sometimes, it can be difficult to navigate the shoals between implying that a beer is good for you, and bad for you.
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legally interesting/controversial, policy
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Jakk’d
We can learn a lot from this Jakk’d label:
- It is one of very few that mentions the amount of caffeine on the label. This is probably a good thing. It is hard to imagine a good argument for disallowing a short, plain statement as to how much of a powerful psychoactive substance is in the beverage you are about to consume. This product has 75 mg. of caffeine per bottle, according to the label. It might be even better if the label used an icon or other simple statement to show that this is roughly equivalent to a cup of coffee.
- According to box 19, the brand name does not refer to anything nefarious, and instead refers to the name of the company’s founder, and other good things like “cool,” “thorough enjoyment,” and “being pumped about the greatness of this drink.” TTB is not so sure, and noted that “The brand name remains under review.”
- This is a rare spirits label with an FDA-style ingredient list.
Jakk’d is made in Temperance, Michigan.
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caffeine/secondary effects, legally interesting/controversial, policy
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Buck Bunnies and Spirits
The Buck Bunny didn’t get very far. It stopped not far from this 2006 approval. Maybe the antlers, or the spirits, or Jägermeister got in the way.
A contributor in California was concerned about the spirits added to this product, and the overall appearance. He said:
It seems legally interesting because it seems to contradict the TTB labeling code about wines containing distilled spirits and being similar to distilled spirits. Maybe those rules don’t apply to flavored wines. Also, it reminds me of a Jackelope.
Quite possibly, it also reminded Peach Street Distillers of a Jackelope. Peach Street rolled out their Jackelope Gin about a year later.
The spirits are probably a minor problem, compared to the other issues noted above. It is common to add spirits to wine. It is less common to mention them, but it is usually required, when those spirits are not derived from the same fruit as the base wine. Here it is grape wine with citrus spirits. If it were grape wine with grape brandy, the spirits would be less likely to show on the label.
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legally interesting/controversial, statement of composition, trademark
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Good Flags and Bad Flags
In many situations, TTB will not allow national flags, and especially not the US flag. The regulations support this. So the above labels seem to be noteworthy exceptions.
Maize Valley Winery’s Redneck Red wine shows The American Flag on the main label, alongside The Confederate Flag.
In the second example, The American Flag appears with the Military Flag of Japan. The wine is made by D’Vine Wine of Fredricksburg, Texas. A notable instance where TTB did not allow the US flag is on this New Hampshire beer.
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