We’ve come a long way, from clay pots to glass bottles to steel cans to . . . the bag-in-box. The bag-in-box came to wine about 10 years ago and Franzia took it and ran with it (Franzia’s website and labels say it’s “The World’s Most Popular Wine.”). But much more recently, the box has come around to package beer and spirits.
Sam Adams Twisted Tea is packed in a 1.3 gallon Cardboard Keg. The box says the beverage will stay fresh for up to 30 days after opening, and that’s pretty good for a beer product. The product is classified as a malt beverage with natural flavors.
Turning to spirits, the Sauza Margarita is packed in a 1.75 liter bag-in-box. It is classified as a spirits cocktail, made with tequila and triple sec.
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Brand Extensions; 'Salada Tea
Tea with a bit of ethyl kick seems to be one of the most popular trends of the past year. TTB has approved many brands, and these are two of the biggest.
Southern Comfort Sweet Tea Cocktail is classified as a liqueur, at 15% alc./vol. The back label proclaims it — “exciting.”
Jack Daniel’s Sweet Tea is classified as a malt beverage with natural flavors. It has 2/3 less alcohol. Google Maps says the products are made 5 miles apart, in Louisville, Kentucky.
Yerba Mate
Here is one of only a few TTB-approved beverages made with yerba mate.
The wiseGeek says:
Yerba mate is one of the most popular natural sources of caffeine in subtropical South America, especially Argentina and Paraguay. Yerba mate leaves can be used to make an infusion that resembles green tea, although much stronger. Yerba mate has about 50 mg of caffeine per six-ounce cup.
By contrast, a cup of brewed coffee has about 2-3 times more caffeine.
MateVeza is an “Organic India Pale Ale Brewed with Yerba Mate.” The label says it is “naturally caffeinated.” It is made by Mendocino Brewing in Ukiah, California.
FTC Staff Comments; Top 5 Things to Know
It is likely that all beer, wine and spirits labels will change dramatically in the near future. TTB has been working on new rules since CSPI and other groups submitted a petition in 2003. The new rules would require a “Serving Facts” panel on every container. This panel would include a lot more information, such as the typical serving size, number of servings per container, calories, carbohydrates, protein and fat. Because this is a big, controversial change, TTB has received more than 18,000 public comments during the past few years. There are far too many comments for most people to review, and so we will highlight and summarize the most noteworthy comments here. The most recent proposal and comments are here. This is comment 19 in a series; to see others, click on the “serving facts” tag below.
The staff of various offices within the Federal Trade Commission submitted a 16 page comment. It said:
- The FTC staff “supports TTB’s proposal to increase substantially the amount of information contained on alcohol labels.”
- TTB should require labels to disclose ounces of pure alcohol per serving, rather than alc./vol. This would allow consumers to compare servings of different drinks without doing mathematical calculations.
- The FTC and TTB share jurisdiction over alcohol beverage labeling, and coordinate often.
- About 65% of Americans drink alcohol.
- The rule would “result in a substantial change in the appearance and content of alcohol labels.”
What's Pure?
It’s one of the most common and oldest words in the English language. Except nobody knows what it means, apparently.
Pure. TTB generally does not allow it on spirits labels, when it appears to describe the end product. So it’s okay to say “made with pure water” but it’s not okay to say “Pure Vodka.” By contrast, there is no such restriction as to wine or beer. It is therefore perfectly okay to suggest that wine, such as the one above, is pure, or to be ambiguous about what is pure.
A teenager might call it random and a judge might call it arbitrary. It is not especially clear why Purity Vodka and Pure BS wine should be okay, but Pure Vodka should not be okay. Absolut has pressed to have these age-old restrictions removed (since way back in 2006), but they don’t appear to be going anywhere fast.
The rationale has been that it’s very difficult to define what is and isn’t “pure,” so it’s best to put the term off limits. Thanks to Master Distiller Masters for bringing these labels to our attention.
Allergens, Nuts and Such
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There is a lot going on at TTB, so it would be easy to lose track of allergens. Way back in 2005 TTB proposed to require allergens (such as nuts and milk) to be disclosed on all alcohol beverage labels. This would follow the 2004 law change for foods more generally. The final rule is due out someday soon, according to TTB’s Agenda. In the meantime, TTB is qualifying some approvals with the following language as on the above approvals:
The disclosure of allergens used in this product is voluntary, pending final rulemaking (See Notice No. 62, 71 FR 42329). However; any reference made to allergens must declare all allergens used in the production of this product, including fining or processing agents.
For those eager to get started, the 16-page proposal is here. O’Riley’s Cream Liqueur (link above) has milk products and a detailed ingredient list. DoReMi Cream Liqueur has about the same, plus nuts.
