Judge dismisses Blue Moon lawsuit

The legal pursuits by some beer aficionados to force the Big Brewers to disclose that they are behind some “crafty” beers, have suffered a set-back. In June 2016 MillerCoors won the dismissal of a proposed class action lawsuit by a consumer who had accused the brewing giant of tricking consumers into paying premium prices for its Blue Moon beer by falsely portraying it as “craft beer”.

According to media reports, U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel in San Diego, California, could not find any evidence that MillerCoors affirmatively misrepresented the origins of Blue Moon, a Belgian-style wheat beer, such as by suggesting it is brewed in small tanks and produced in a small brick building run by “The SandLot Guys”.

“At best, these advertisements contain generalised, vague and unspecified assertions that amount to mere puffery upon which a reasonable consumer could not rely,” Judge Curiel wrote in his decision.