Last week, San Antonio Express News reported that a California-based winery named San Antonio Winery brought a trademark suit against a San Antonio-based winery called Lara Vineyard. In its complaint, San Antonio Winery alleged that Lara Vineyard’s use of the term “San Antonio” as a fanciful name on its labels infringed upon…
Tag: intellectual property
Budweiser Wins Trademark Opposition Over Winebud
Last week, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) issued an opinion that sided with Anheuser-Busch, LLC’s opposition of the registration of the mark WINEBUD. See Anheuser-Busch, LLC v. Innvopak Systems Pty Ltd., Opposition No. 91194148 (August 17, 2015) [precedential]. The applicant, Innvopak Systems Party Limited, originally filed an application to register the…
Seattle Winery Forced to Change Name After Cease and Desist Letter from Jackson Family Wines
Last week, Komo News reported that a Seattle-based winery, Bartholomew Winery, was forced to change the name of one of its wine brands after receiving a cease and desist letter from Jackson Family Wines. See Seattle Winery Forced to Change Name, Label After Cease-and-Desist. The wine brand, Jaxon, is reportedly named after the son of…
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…
Santa Barbara, Bordeaux, and Bourgogne/Chablis Sign the Joint Declaration to Protect Wine Place & Origin
Three renowned wine regions recently signed the Joint Declaration to Protect Wine Place & Origin. By signing the Declaration, the new signatories—the American wine region of Santa Barbara County and the French wine regions of Bordeaux and Bourgogne/Chablis—become part of a global movement to protect wine place names and ensure…
Yamanashi: The First Japanese Geographical Indication for Wine
On July 16, 2013, the Director General of the Tax Agency of Japan announced the designation of Yamanashi as the first Japanese geographical indication (“GI”) for wine. “To be allowed to carry the name of Yamanashi, wine needs to use only limited kinds of grape from Yamanashi, including Koshu and…
Napa Valley Receives Geographical Indication Status in Brazil
Recently, Napa Valley Vintners Association (“NVVA”) announced that Brazil has formerly recognized that Napa Valley is of Geographical Indication (“GI”) status. Brazil will now protect Napa Valley from misuse of the wine region’s name within Brazil’s borders. (See Napa Valley Vintners Announce GI Status Approval in Brazil.) The news was announced…
Upcoming CLE International Conferences on Alcohol Beverage Law
Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) International is hosting two upcoming conferences on alcohol beverage law. The first, which is the Alcohol Beverage Law & Technology Conference, will be held in San Francisco, CA on May 11, 2012 and is co-chaired by James M. Seff, Esq. of Pillsbury Law and Marc E. Sorini, Esq. of…
‘Grand Cru’ and the Use of Quality Terms in the United States
Recently, I read an interesting article discussing the use of the term ‘Grand Cru’ by a United States winemaker. (See Much Ado About a Wine Marketing Designation.) The story reflects the use of the term ‘Grand Cru’ by Sea Smoke Cellars of Santa Barbara, California. After receiving a review in…
Russian Wine Producers Will Stop Using the Term ‘Champagne’ on Wine Products
Some very exciting news reached On Reserve this morning, thanks to Sean Buckley of Texas Tech University School of Law. With the recent execution of the bilateral trade agreement between Australia and the EU on the first of September, this news comes to us with great understanding. This last week,…