For those still somehow naively believing that sources and ownership stakes don't matter as long as the beer stokes his or her self-serving narcissism, or that "big beer" is NOT malign by the necessity of its very nature, please check out the West Sixth and Magic Hat sixes and nines lawsuit imbroglio and learn something from it.
‘You’d think we could settle this over a beer’: Multinational sues West Sixth microbrewery over trademark, by Michael Tierney (Insider Louisville)
We have serious David versus Goliath on our hands.
Magic Hat IP and Independent Brewers Corp. have filed a federal lawsuit against West Sixth Brewing Co., based in Lexington.
Better yet, just stick a Magic Hat #9 logo on that fellow's posterior (above), and it's my reaction in a nutshell.
This story's all over the Internetz, and deservedly so. About all I can add is that we probably need to get used to it: A no-longer-craft corporate poseur almost surely prompted by an AB-InBev wholesaler hiding on the grassy knoll gleefully piddles on a genuine local/regional craft producer (West Sixth), confident in the knowledge that the target audience for Magic Hat is utterly oblivious to the concerns of craft beer consciousness as we know them.
I was asked yesterday whether being non-craft means Magic Hat must lose legal protection s enjoyed by all Americans. Of course not. What they inevitably lose of their own accord in the absence of ethical craft consciousness is an equitable sense of grace -- but that's what all corporate chains lack.
Now it's our brave new world, and Magic Ass Hat is just an unwelcome part of it.
And my solution?
That's easy: Polemics. Read and repeat. And drink some West Sixth to show some solidarity against the vandals.
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ReplyDeleteAnother excellent piece, Roger. I think it's fair to say that my position on this issue is 'evolving'. In the wake of the campaign, a high profile beer-blogger wrote a piece urging brands to 'keep their legal battles off social media'. I confess I have not read it, primarily because I disagree in principal with that sentiment. West Sixth, staring down an army of lawyers and an array of 'solutions' that they deemed unworkable, financially unviable, and/or utter BS shared their plight with their audience. Transparency remains one of the strongest weapons of the underdog/independent/poor (relatively, if you will). Anyway, here's where I start to ramble, so I'll just wrap it up with another 'thank you for your input'. Cheers.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I'd call polemics an equitable sense of grace.
ReplyDeleteWe've seen this type of battle before between "craft/independent" beer businesses (Strange Brew vs Strange Brew, Lift Bridge Brewing vs Lucette Brewing, Left Hand fighting for Nitro and "Stranger" trademark) not just corporate instigated ones. Having read the correspondences and seen all the pictures, MGAH, has a leg to stand on for a few of its concerns and did actually graciously back off on others. Of course in the end the courts will decide, and it will set a interesting precedent as with all the new breweries popping up there are quiet a few with similar design elements on their labels.
Wait till Boston Beer comes after you for being so similar to New Albion :) j/k...