New lawsuit against the 5th Dimension Inc (Tito's)

[Hypnopooper]

Well it looks like truth in Labeling and the latest lawsuit on Tito's could be a small problem for the company...

There's no denying, that we all would like to be as successfull as "Tito's" but it looks as though the "Handmade" and "distilled in Austin, TX" may end up being a problem.

What's more interesting is that we may actually get some real facts from this court case as to what the production method is and whether GNS is in fact what is being re-distilled in Austin TX. (although I think most us have an inclination to suspect GNS)

It's a pipe dream for me, but hopefully we can also start getting the TTB to put some rules around GNS and how the industry truthfully labels re-distilled GNS.

http://www.bevlaw.com/bevlog/vodka/the-titos-lawsuit-when-approval-is-not-approval

[Hypnopooper]

Subject should have stated "New lawsuit against the 5th Generation Inc. (Tito's)"

[TetonDistillery]

This lawsuit is silly. While I agree that Tito is likely pushing it by calling his vodka "handmade", I don't think he deserves to get sued over the issue. It is probably just a lawyer looking to settle for $100,000 in legal fees.

[3d0g]

Agreed. There's no legal TTB definition of "hand made" to my knowledge. Kind of like "Natural" foods (also a legally meaningless term). At least they're re-distilling through their own equipment. That's better than all the shady bourbons skirting FCR Title 27, Section 5.36 in my book.

[Hookemhorns]

I don't really see a big deal. They started small and opened a lot of doors for craft, that's Tito's roots. Fifth Generation survived and has become extremely successful. As you grow processes change and you evolve and adapt. You start off doing things yourself, then you hire people and at some point it becomes more cost effective to automate. It's Vodka, personally i don't care if they rerun the product and blend or put their own spin on the product, Fifth Generation is a distillery not a virtual operation. What I do have a problem with is all the private labels that one company produces and 6 others are on the shelf with all kinds of price points claiming to be distilleries and handmade. Texas has a bunch of these so called handmade local products that are produced by a couple of unnamed distilleries in North Texas. Thoughts Anyone?

[Jedd Haas]

Texas has a bunch of these so called handmade local products that are produced by a couple of unnamed distilleries in North Texas. Thoughts Anyone?

Blog posting on this topic by Clay Risen:

In Which I Offer Half-Baked Thoughts About Peak Craft After a Visit to Spec’s

[brentondouglas]

I really like Tito's vodka. I like it for many reasons.

But I do NOT believe my admiration for Tito's should encourage me look the other way on this issue. I consider Tito's to be a huge flagship of the industry. They are a major source of inspiration to new distillers and they have a major influence on the industry. They are leaders. Shouldn't they use their influence to help progress the industry in a positive way? Should they be focused on adding integrity and value into industry? Should they NOT be teaching the new distillers that it's best to see how far you can stretch the truth?

I believe, as leaders, Tito's has a moral and ethical obligation to set a good example. Furthermore, I think the market would react positively.

And if Tito's can be considered "hand made" then I don't know any tangible object that is sold in commerce that could not be considered "hand made."

For the sake of the industry's graceful growth and to maintain a healthy relationship with it's consumers, it might be time for the big boy's to start acting like men and lead by example.

[wadewood]

I sent the lawyers involved with suit a note advising them to focus less on the 'hand made' argument (vague, not legally defined) and more on the Distilled in Austin by Fifth Generation.

[H-TownDistiller]

I don't really see a big deal. They started small and opened a lot of doors for craft, that's Tito's roots. Fifth Generation survived and has become extremely successful. As you grow processes change and you evolve and adapt. You start off doing things yourself, then you hire people and at some point it becomes more cost effective to automate. It's Vodka, personally i don't care if they rerun the product and blend or put their own spin on the product, Fifth Generation is a distillery not a virtual operation. What I do have a problem with is all the private labels that one company produces and 6 others are on the shelf with all kinds of price points claiming to be distilleries and handmade. Texas has a bunch of these so called handmade local products that are produced by a couple of unnamed distilleries in North Texas. Thoughts Anyone?

Here Here

[HedgeBird]

The bottle of Titos I have contains a required commodity statement "Distilled from 100% Corn".

This is the statement that would be correct for products identified as "Group 2"

GROUP 2

-Neutral Spirits/Alcohol produced by original distillation

-Vodka produced by original distillation

-Grain Spirits produced by original distillation

-Distilled Gin

All products in group two are either Gin or something created from original distillation.

"Vodka produced by redistillation" is in Group 1 and requires the commodity statement of "100% NEUTRAL SPIRITS DISTILLED FROM CORN” or "100% CORN NEUTRAL SPIRITS"

At my distillery I am making Vodka from redistilled GNS and so I went with the commodity statement of "100% GRAIN NEUTRAL SPIRITS." It would seem that Tito's is claiming to be made from original distillation, and not GNS, based on the commodity statement they are using. It will be interesting to see if this statement changes now that they are under the spotlight.

http://www.ttb.gov/spirits/bam/chapter1.pdf