Beer Brewer Says “Legal Weed” Is Okay Again

Earlier in the year, we posted about the problems that Vaune and Barbara Dillmann of the Mt. Shasta Brewing Company was having with the message “Try Legal Weed” printed on his bottle caps. Apparently, commingling references to drugs on alcoholic beverages is prohibited – a little something the Dillmanns learned when the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau got involved.

The Dillmanns appealed the ruling and were in the middle of preparations to litigate the matter when they received some good news: they can continue using the slogan on the Mt. Shasta Brewing Company bottle caps.

The Dillmanns’ argument stems from the fact that his brewery, Mt. Shasta, is based in Weed, California. They reasoned that the slogan was a play on words – and not an inducement to mix beer and pot. The feds now agree.

The town’s name is not – as much as you want to think it is – named after the marijuana plant. The town’s name honors its founder Abner Weed, who eventually became a state Senator. The Dillmanns have used the reference to the town’s name on five prior beer caps – but the feds balked when they attempted to use it on their newest product, Lemurian Lager. The brewery used blank caps while the matter was being appealed but will switch back to the original, now really legal, “legal weed” caps shortly.

The drama might have been a bit more than the Dillmanns had bargained for but it has brought at least one good thing: sales are booming. Distribution is, however, limited. The beer is currently available in California, Oregon and Washington.

Now, of course, I’m curious, too. Have you had any? Is it worth all of the fuss?

** Don’t forget to enter this month’s contest! Click here to find out how to win! **

(c) Brew Ha-Ha, 2008