Palcohol is back.

After approval from out of nowhere about a year ago, and cancellation of the same approvals a few days later, it is back. I have it on good authority that TTB has ironed out the kinks and approved the labels this week. Sen. Schumer will not be pleased (aka, he may be very pleased to have this whipping boy back within striking distance). Many states have already banned it. But this gives new life to this new category. Hats off to Mark Phillips for weathering the storm and persevering.

Below is the approved label as of 2014 alongside the label as approved on March 10, 2015. There are small, technical changes, mostly relating to how to measure the taxable commodity. Boxes 20 and 23 reconfirm that it took Mark almost a year to get this approval. The back label makes it look like an awful lot of work and controversy for a small amount of alcohol (when prepared, it only has half the liquid of a beer, and 1/4 the abv compared to vodka?!?). In an email on the day of re-approval, Mark, the force behind Palcohol, explained:

Yes, Palcohol is back. It’s been quite a journey, over four years to get Palcohol approved by the TTB. I...

First there was ARTAL the list. Then there was ARTAL the blog post. And now, there is ARTAL:  The Movie. In which Oli tries to help you remember the power and pitfalls of the big list of Allowable Revisions to Approved Labels. In brief, this should help you remember that you don’t need a new COLA every time you make a change to your already-approved label. There are dozens of small and not so small changes that are ok to make, without any need of a new COLA — or the wait, frustration, and expense.

Ladies and gentlemen it is with great pleasure that I introduce Oli, the sporadically employed climate scientist, from Chichester. What does that have to do with labels and COLAs? Watch and see. Find out why some may benefit from having a small group of specialized lawyers and paralegals to help you get things moved through TTB and to the marketplace with less pain and delay.

What was the best beer ad, or ad of any type, in yesterday’s Super Bowl broadcast? Hint, it was a Bud ad, but not the one with the dogs, horses, and wolf. Instead, it was the one above. The one in which Bud took on its main competition, directly and powerfully, roughly like those on the field. It’s the first time in many years that Bud did not seem to be on the defensive. It seems clear that Bud’s plan is to defend Bud the brand such as above, and defend Bud the company by buying a bunch of esteemed craft brewers. Maybe they can have their cake and eat it too. Before I scope out anyone else’s views, here are mine:

1. The 60 second ad opens with a view of an old brewery with a big Budweiser sign and a small American flag atop it; the building is bathing in the sun and surrounded by trees and evokes old-time Americana within a couple seconds.
2. Within five seconds, it says BUDWEISER, PROUDLY A MACRO BEER and shows lots of real and good looking ingredients, to go along with the pretty buildings way back at seconds 1 and 2.
3. The ad takes dead aim at and skewers various hipsters such as the ones above. Hipster number 1...

TTB does not allow Aged Vodka, or Aged Gin. But this would seem to show it’s pretty easy to work around these arcane, antiquated restrictions. Note how the word “aged” is nowhere but everywhere on this label, and Absolut does not mind throwing in a reference to “craft” for good measure.