Diageo has issued its first response to a class action lawsuit in the US, accusing the company of falsely marketing the purity of two of its leading tequila brands.
Filed in May by consumers Avi Pusateri and Chaim Mishulovin, along with New York restaurant Sushi Tokyo, the lawsuit alleges that Diageo misleadingly labels bottles of Casamigos as “Tequila 100% Agave Azul” and Don Julio as “100% de Agave.” In a response to the US District Court in the eastern district of New York this week, Diageo called the claims “baseless” and argued that the complaint “fails to allege a single fact” supporting the assertion that the brands are not made entirely from agave.
A Diageo spokesperson said late yesterday (14 July): “All Casamigos and Don Julio tequilas labelled as ‘100% agave’ are made from 100% blue weber agave. We will vigorously defend the quality and integrity of our tequilas in court, and against anyone who is spreading misinformation and lies about our products.”
In North America, tequila labelled as being ‘100% agave’ must be made entirely from blue weber agave sugars and bottled in Mexico, as required by Mexican regulations (NOM) and recognised by US federal authorities. Tequilas not meeting this standard – known as mixtos – can contain up to 49% non-agave sugars. Misleading agave labelling risks violating consumer protection laws and could result in legal or regulatory action.
Two related lawsuits were filed against the group in California and Florida earlier this month. According to a report by Reuters, one of them claims that certain versions of Casamigos and Don Julio contain only 33% to 42% agave-derived ethanol, based on carbon isotope testing commissioned by the plaintiff.
Back in February, Diageo said it had rebalanced its approach to the tequila category having concluded that Casamigos and Don Julio had been “going up against each other”.
