• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • About Craft Brewing Business

Craft Brewing Business

Professional Insight, Unfiltered

Craft Brewing Business Craft Brewing Business
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment & Systems
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • COVID-19

Walmart is lying about its Trouble Brewing ‘craft beer,’ says lawsuit

February 15, 2017Keith Gribbins

Walmart
Just can’t believe Walmart would try to take advantage of consumers. 

Remember how that guy sued MillerCoors because he felt deceived by how the company branded Blue Moon as a craft beer? Well, the federal judge dismissed the case with prejudice. The plaintiff (Evan Parent) sought damages for deceptive trade, consumer law violations, false advertising law and unfair competition. He really had a beef with the up charging of Blue Moon and the company’s use of the term “Artfully Crafted” on its labeling and ads.

Bit of a stretch? The judge thought yes. Move along.

Well, how about this one? Last year, we reported that Walmart has been selling commissioned “craft beer” for its empire of big box retail stories — it’s been private labeling the beer from Rochester, N.Y.-based Trouble Brewing — except there is no Trouble Brewing — it’s made up. That’s what a beer drinker’s lawsuit filed in Hamilton County, Ohio, says (basically Cincinnati). According to this article on courthousenews.com:

“The trouble is, ‘Trouble Brewing’ doesn’t really exist,” the complaint states. “The applicant listed on filings with the Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) is ‘Winery Exchange Inc.’, which has since turned into WX Brands. WX Brands ‘develops exclusive brands of wine, beer and spirits for retailers around the world’ according to its website. But under the ‘brewery address’ section of the TTB filings, Genesee Brewing’s business office in Rochester, NY is listed instead. Genesee is owed [sic] by another company that brews Costa Rican lager among other industrial brands. Upon information and belief, Genesee produces well over the prescribe amount that would be considered ‘small.’”

AND, not only is Walmart lying on the bottle and branding to consumers buying its Trouble Brewing brand at mega marts, it’s placing those beers next to other products that meet the Brewers Association definition of craft. According to the same article:

“Defendant stocks its craft beer next to other ‘craft beers’ for sale in its stores, rather than with other mass produced beers, such as Budweiser, Miller or Coors products,” the lawsuit states. “Again, by placing the craft beer on its shelves with other ‘craft beers’, defendant is further perpetuating the myth that it’s a craft beer.”

Lead plaintiff Matthew Adam seeks to represent a class of Ohio residents who have bought the beer at issue. The lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages for violations of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act, fraud, and unjust enrichment, as well as an injunction preventing further false and misleading advertisements regarding the beer.

According to other reports, Walmart has already moved on to its next money-grubbing scheme, aimed at fucking over another sector of American small businesses.

Harvest Hosts
Breweries that host RV travelers via Harvest Hosts can earn some extra cash
Dunes Brewing - NFT Mug Club
Dunes Brewing launches NFT Mug Club with virtual and tangible things of value
brewery-NFTs
Marketing idea of the week: Three Denver breweries launch NFT for IRL event
Lasting Joy Brewery opens in Tivoli, N.Y., this weekend, and it looks spectacular

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Eric Johnson says

    February 23, 2017 at 12:01 pm

    Did you really have to drop a f-bomb at the end there?

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

Latest News

  • Hey Vermont non-profits, Lawson’s Finest Liquids is accepting applicants for its 2023 Sunshine Fund
  • People moves: Ohio Craft Brewers Association tap new board members + news from Migration, Bell’s, New Belgium and MobCraft
  • HAAS debuts Kettle Redi hop product for bitterness, light stability
  • Beer book: Brewing with Hemp: The Essential Guide

Sign up for our newsletter

unsubscribe from list

Most Popular Today

Recent Features

  • People moves: Ohio Craft Brewers Association tap new board members + news from Migration, Bell’s, New Belgium and MobCraft
    June 30, 2022
  • A behind the scenes look at branding a startup brewery
    June 28, 2022
  • robot beer salesThe future of retail beer sales is here
    June 27, 2022
  • Sapporo to acquire Stone Brewing, that one brewery that kept saying it wasn’t interested in selling out
    June 24, 2022
  • Reebok-x-Rec-2Harpoon collaborates with Reebok, Elysian reveals new tarot labels and more beers to know this week
    June 23, 2022
  • Carlsberg announces largest test trial of its fully recyclable Fiber Bottles (Mads Mikkelsen’s a fan)
    June 22, 2022

Footer

  • Email Newsletter Sign Up
  • About Craft Brewing Business
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise on Craft Brewing Business
  • Media Kit Download
  • Privacy and Terms

© 2022 · CBB Media LLC

Posting....