While it was touched on a bit in last week's class, I left wondering how the laws of wine production, distribution and sale differ from that of other types of alcohol. Specifically, I wanted more clarity around what powers the federal government and states have to monitor distribution of other alcoholic beverages and take action when they deem something unsafe or anti-consumer.
After trying to come up with an example of this I've seen in the past, I thought of the well-known (and often mocked) anecdote around the once-popular alcoholic drink Four Loko (and most people who read this post will start laughing and stop reading right about here). Four Loko is a very sweet, sparkling alcoholic beverage probably best known by younger drinkers and often purchased in convenience stores. It received quite a bit of press for mixing high quantities of alcohol with caffeine and taurine. This mixture was so problematic and dangerous that the beverage was banned by the FDA in 2010. Soon after modifying the recipe to remove caffeine and taurine, Four Lokos were available again but saw their sales numbers diminished greatly.
While a ban of this sort is made out of safety concerns which don't directly compare with the type of free speech or monopoly concerns we discussed last week, the Four Loko history is worth remembering. While I myself have never had a Four Loko, I can understand why many consumers were angry over the ban of the old recipe. They argued that this ban was anti-consumer and that they should be allowed to willingly choose what type of alcoholic beverages to enjoy. Additionally, one could argue that the same effects as the old Four Loko can easily be achieved by drinking the new Four Loko with any energy drink bought at the same convenience stores. Therefore, there's an argument to be made that the FDA's ban does not necessarily increase general consumer safety but also violates consumers' right to choose.
Obviously Four Loko doesn't compare great with wine, but in light of the conversations we had last week I think that this sort of federal oversight and regulation is an interesting anecdote to keep in mind when surveying the wine industry today.
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2010/11/16/schumer-feds-may-move-to-ban-alcoholic-energy-drinks/
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/17/alcohol.caffeine.drinks/index.html?hpt=C1
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2009-08-24-0908230370-story.html
The regulation around this baffles me, because where do you draw the line? Should convenience stores let you buy red bull and vodka simultaneously? I spent the holidays in Japan for 3 weeks and you can buy a similar drink to Four Loko called Strong Zero at any convenience store for 100 yen (~$1). I saw so many tourists and locals drinking it daily. And they have the longest lifespan of any country on earth (a citation is probably needed here but you get my point)!
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