Willamette Valley Vineyards is suing Five Cent Farm, Inc., a neighboring farm. According to Statesman Journal, the lawsuit filed against Five Cent indicates that the Vineyard is claiming more than $400,000 in economic loss from damage to the Vineyard’s pinot noir grapes. The complaint states that Willamette Valley Vineyards has a…
Category: Contemporary Wine Law Issues
TTB Proposes New Loess Hills District AVA and Expansion of Willamette Valley
TTB is accepting comments through August 17, 2015 on a proposed American Viticultural Area (“AVA”), as per a proposed rule in the Federal Register on June 18, 2015. The proposed AVA is as follows: Loess Hills District Viticultural Area (Notice No. 153, Docket No. TTB-2015-0009): The proposed AVA of “Loess Hills District” comprises of a 12,897-square mile (8,254,151-acre)…
Empire Wine Bill Passes in New York State Senate
In case yesterday’s news wasn’t good enough for industry members, today we are here to repot something even better: the acclaimed Empire Wine bill passed today in New York’s Senate. That’s quite a successful move for a bill that was only introduced a day ago. The bill now awaits Governor…
MillerCoors Hit with Class Action Suit for Use of “Artfully Crafted” on Blue Moon Beer
On April 24, 2015, a class action lawsuit was filed in state court against MillerCoors LLC, alleging that the company’s Blue Moon beer deceives consumers into thinking the product is “Craft” by marketing the brand as “Artfully Crafted” and disassociating it from MillerCoors. See Parent v. MillerCoors LLC. The plaintiff alleges that MillerCoors…
Importer Pasternak Answers and Counterclaims Against Vignerons de la Méditerranée
In January, On Reserve reported that Vignerons de la Méditerranée (“VM”) filed a complaint in the Supreme Court of the State of New York County of Westchester against Harrison-based importer Pasternak Wine Imports. See Vignerons de la Méditerranée sues Westchester County Importer Pasternak. The complaint named Domaines Barons de Rothschild (“DBR”) as a co-defendant…
South Dakota Opens Doors to Direct Shipping of Wine
Last week, the South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard signed a bill (HB 1001) into law allowing the direct shipment of wine and making South Dakota the 43rd state to allow direct-to-consumer shipping of wine. See South Dakota Governor Signs Direct-to-Consumer Wine Shipping Bill into Law. According to The Financial, the law’s provisions go into effect…
Post-Pom Wonderful and the Not So Wonderful Impact on Alcohol Beverages
In June of last year, the Supreme Court decided a rather revolutionary case for the food industry: Pom Wonderful LLC v. The Coca-Cola Company. The case, which was commenced by Pom Wonderful, questioned the label of a competitor’s product, Coca-Cola’s Minute Maid Blueberry Pomegranate juice. The Minute Maid label contained the words…
Jamieson Ranch and Pernod Ricard Reach Settlement in Trademark Lawsuit
Earlier this year, On Reserve reported about the declaratory judgment suit launched against against Pernod Ricard’s Irish Distillers Limited, owner of the renowned Jameson Irish Whiskey, by Napa Valley-based vineyard Madison Vineyard Holdings, LLC, the owner of Jamieson Ranch. See Jamieson Vineyards Takes On Pernod Ricard’s Irish Distillers. The complaint was filed in response to a cease and desist…
On Reserve Author Quoted in The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal recently published an article detailing the New York State Liquor Authority (“NYSLA”) and Empire Wine dispute on retailer direct shipment to consumers. The retailer originally filed suit against the NYSLA in September, shortly after the Authority issued a letter to Empire stating the retailer violated a state…
TTB Establishes 11 New American Viticultural Areas in Paso Robles
On Thursday, October 9, 2014, TTB published a final rule in the Federal Register establishing eleven new American Viticultural Areas (“AVAs”) within the existing Paso Robles viticultural area in San Luis Obispo County, California. The eleven new AVAs are as follows: Adelaida District; Creston District; El Pomar District; Paso Robles Estrella…