Global Courant 2023-04-21 16:43:13
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Guardians of Champagne won’t let anyone take the bubbly name in vain, not even an American beer giant.
Miller High Life has used the slogan “Champagne or Beers” for many years. This week, that appropriation became impossible to swallow.
At the request of the trade organization that defends the interests of houses and growers of the northeastern French sparkling wine, Belgian customs crushed more than 2,000 cans of Miller High Life that were advertised as such.
The Champagne Committee asked for a batch of 2,352 cans to be destroyed because the American brewery’s age-old motto conflicted with the protected designation of origin “Champagne”.
The shipment was intercepted in the Belgian port of Antwerp at the beginning of February, a spokesman for Belgian customs reported on Friday, and was destined for Germany.
Molson Coors Beverage Co., which owns the Miller High Life brand, does not currently export it to the EU, and Belgian customs refused to say who ordered the beers.
The buyer in Germany “was informed and has not challenged the decision,” the trade association said in a statement.
Frederick Miller, a German immigrant to the US, founded the Miller Brewing Company in the 1850s. Miller High Life, the oldest brand, was launched as a flagship in 1903.
According to the Milwaukee-based brand’s website, the company began using the nickname “Champagne of Bottle Beers” three years later. It was shortened to “The Champagne of Beers” in 1969. The beer is also available in 750-milliliter champagne-style bottles during the holiday season.
“With its elegant clear glass bottle and fresh taste, Miller High Life has proudly carried the nickname ‘The Champagne of Beers’ for nearly 120 years,” said Molson Coors Beverage Co. in a statement to The Associated Press.
As popular as the slogan is in the United States, it is incompatible with European Union rules that make it clear that goods that infringe a protected designation of origin can be treated as counterfeit.
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The bloc of 27 countries has a system of Protected Geographical Indications created to guarantee the true origin and quality of artisanal foods, wines and spirits and to protect them from imitation. That market is almost worth it 75 billion euros ($87 billion) per year – half of it in wines, according to a 2020 study by the EU executive.
Charles Goemaere, general manager of the Champagne Committee, said the destruction of the beers “confirms the importance the European Union attaches to designations of origin and rewards the determination of champagne producers to protect their designation.”
Molson Coors Beverage Co. said it “respects local restrictions” around the word champagne.
“However, we remain proud of Miller High Life, its nickname and its origins in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,” the company said. “We invite our friends in Europe to the US at any time to toast the High Life together.”
According to Belgian customs, the destruction of the cans was paid for by the Champagne Committee. According to their joint statement, it was carried out “with the utmost respect for environmental concerns by ensuring that the entire batch, both content and packaging, is recycled in an environmentally sound manner.”
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Mark D. Carlson contributed from Brussels.
