A proposed class-action lawsuit alleges that Anheuser-Busch InBev is deceiving consumers by positioning its Veza Sur brewery in Miami as a craft brewery.
Consumers Byron Jackson and Mario Mena Jr. filed lawsuit last week against A-B and its subsidiary, Miami Beer Ventures LLC (MBV), in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Florida Miami Division.
Jackson and Mena, who both live in Miami-Dade County, claim they were misled into purchasing what they believed to be craft beer made by a small brewery with Latin roots in Miami’s Wynwood Arts District.
“In reality, it is simply another one of the dozens of brands made by the largest brewer in the world, Anheuser-Busch,” the complaint reads. “It has no authentic Latin roots, and is not even made in Miami.”
A-B launched the Latin-themed Veza Sur brand in April 2017 as part of its then-High End portfolio (now called The Brewers Collective) of acquired craft and import brands. Veza Sur, though, was something different: a “latin-American inspired craft beer brand” created from the ground up by A-B with a brewpub in the Wynwood district.
The new brand was the brainchild of Max-Antonio Burger, who was tabbed as Veza Sur’s GM, 10 Barrel Brewing co-founder Chris Cox and Bogota Beer Company founder Berny Silberwasser. All are affiliated with A-B.
A-B lists Veza Sur on its website among its other Brewers Collective brands, which includes 10 Barrel, Goose Island, Elysian Brewing, Blue Point, Breckenridge, Devils Backbone, Four Peaks, Platform Beer, Wicked Weed, Golden Road, Karbach, Virtue Cider, Maha hard seltzer and LQD.
In a statement shared with Brewbound, an A-B spokesperson wrote: “We are aware of the lawsuit and believe it is without merit. Anheuser-Busch is extremely proud of our craft partners, the beer they brew, and the support they provide their local communities.”
The lawsuit alleges that A-B “intentionally and deliberately portray Veza Sur as a local, craft brewery that is born from, part of, and made in Miami. It masquerades as having Latin-American roots.” The lawsuit also calls Veza Sur “a macrobrew ABI brand, and not a craft Miami brand.”
“Despite all of defendant’s false marketing and branding, Veza Sur is not a craft brewery,” the lawsuit says. “Instead, it is just another beer from ABI, the largest beer company in the world.”
According to the lawsuit, Jackson and Mena believed they were visiting a new craft brewery in the Wynwood Arts District. The lawsuit claims Jackson and Mena each consider “the ownership of businesses” they frequent and “consistently … support locally owned businesses.” Both claim they continued to support Veza Sur, including buying about a 6-pack a month and visiting the brewery.
The lawsuit says neither Jackson nor Mena would have visited the brewery or purchased Veza Sur beers if they’d known of A-B’s ownership. The lawsuit also claims that the beer they purchased “had less value than what [they] paid” and led them to perpetuate the misrepresentation to friends and thus “suffered legally cognizable damage proximately caused by defendant’s misconduct.”
After learning of A-B’s ownership, both Jackson and Mena stopped frequenting Veza Sur, the lawsuit says.
“As a result of defendants’ false, deceptive, and misleading packaging, labeling and omissions, consumers such as plaintiffs are deceived when they purchase Veza Sur beer,” the lawsuit says. “As a result of that deception, defendants have collected millions of dollars from the sale of Veza Sur beer that they would not have otherwise been paid. The plaintiffs and class members paid money for a product that is not what it claims to be or what they bargained for. They paid a premium for Veza Sur Beer when they could have instead bought other, less expensive, domestic beer, and consumers have lost the opportunity to purchase and consume other, truly local craft beer.”
The lawsuit points to Google listings online, calling Veza Sur “Wynwood’s Latin craft brewery & bar” and social media posts as proof of the deception. The lawsuit also runs through Veza Sur’s portfolio of beers, and notes that the descriptions highlight a “Latin influence.”
For example, Spanglish (Latin Lager) is touted as being “inspired by our Latin roots,” the lawsuit says.
“Interestingly, Spanglish has the same ABV content as Bud Light, another ABI product,” the lawsuit adds in the footnotes. “Additionally, Veza Sur sells beer micheladas made with Latin Lager. ABI produces ‘Bud Light Chelada,’ which is listed as Bud Light lager beer with natural flavor and certified color.”
Veza Sur’s packaging is also a point of contention, which the lawsuit claims “reflect a commitment to the charade that Veza Sur is a local brewery in the business of brewing craft beer.” Proof of this, the lawsuit alleges, includes 6-pack packaging omitting its corporate ownership and instead citing MBV and Islamorada Brewing Company LLC. It also points to packaging with the hashtag “HechaEnMiami,” which means made in Miami, but some of the beer is produced at Islamorada Brewing Company in Fort Pierce, Florida.
Jackson and Mena are seeking a jury trial. According to the lawsuit, the “aggregate sum of the claims of the members of the putative class action exceed $5 million, exclusive of interest and costs.”