Last year, we wrote about the absolutely ridiculous claim by a rum distillery in the British Virgin Islands, named Pusser's, that a bar in New York City, named Painkiller, cease using the name and cease serving a drink by that name. At issue? Pusser's apparently has the US trademark on "Painkiller," as a rum drink that's made with Pusser's Rum. That the drink itself was apparently created ten years before it included Pusser's rum is apparently unimportant. Either way, the legal fight was apparently too much, and Painkiller the bar has agreed to drop the name, and rebrand as PKNY. But here's where things got interesting. While the company may have won that battle, it may be losing the larger war, as tons of bartenders are pissed off about the whole fight, and are unlikely to use Pusser's rum for anything:
"What followed could only be considered a very bad week for Pusser's. While the lawsuit was settled in their favor, this small brand found itself a pariah among many bartenders and fans of PKNY. Within hours of the news, several Facebook groups were launched, calling for boycotts of Pusser's rum and an end to trademarked cocktail recipes (these pages had hundreds of supporters within a few days); and bartenders around the country began conducting their own forms of civil disobedience, serving and in some cases advertising Painkillers that are notably not made with Pussers, and posting photos of the menus online as a challenge to Pusser's to sue every bar that ignored the trademarked recipe. "
Click
HERE for the complete story. Please visit us at
The Rum Shop for all your rum-related needs, including purchasing rum on-line, rum recipes, rum tasting notes, rum event information and rum consulting services. "Got Rum?" Magazine is back in circulation, get your free copy
HERE.
Last year, we wrote about the absolutely ridiculous claim by a rum distillery in the British Virgin Islands, named Pusser's, that a bar in New York City, named Painkiller, cease using the name and cease serving a drink by that name. At issue? Pusser's apparently has the US trademark on "Painkiller," as a rum drink that's made with Pusser's Rum. That the drink itself was apparently created ten years before it included Pusser's rum is apparently unimportant. Either way, the legal fight was apparently too much, and Painkiller the bar has agreed to drop the name, and rebrand as PKNY. But here's where things got interesting. While the company may have won that battle, it may be losing the larger war, as tons of bartenders are pissed off about the whole fight, and are unlikely to use Pusser's rum for anything:
No comments:
Post a Comment