Constellation Brands, the giant owner of the million-case Meiomi brand, for which it paid $315m in 2015, has intimated that it might take legal action against small-scale Sonoma winemaker, Adam Lee. The controversy arose from Lee's claim that a bottle of Meiomi 2021 contains as much sugar as 32 bottles of his Dial Tone Pinot Noir. In California, Lee is best known as co-founder of Siduri, a winery specializing in single-vineyard Pinot Noir which he sold to Jackson Family Wines in 2015
He originally made his claim in a Facebook advertisement that Constellation only noticed when a store in Kansas displayed it next to a display containing both Meiomi and Dial Tone. In a letter to Lee, Constellation demanded that he provide evidence to support his statement or face potential legal action. The letter, which Lee posted on his website, stated that if he could not substantiate his claim, it would be assumed he was making "false or misleading statements" in his advertising.
Laboratory-tested
In his publicly shared response to the company's law firm, Lee explained that he had both wines analyzed in a laboratory. Meiomi, the analysis revealed, contained 19.4 grams of residual sugar per litre, while Dial Tone had just 0.6 grams. Lee sardonically noted in his reply that he had to use a calculator, but he firmly believed his statement was accurate. According to the Meiomi website, the sugar content is even higher, at 20 g/l.
Lee emphasizes on his site that he has nothing against Meiomi itself, saying that everyone should drink what they like. His criticism, and his Facebook ad, sought to point out that both wines can be sold as dry. Lee isn't too worried about a potential lawsuit, telling the San Francisco Chronicle, "Numbers are numbers." He also added that his insurance would cover any legal issues related to advertising.
The owner of the wine shop in Kansas isn't concerned either, and he's leaving the sign up. He sees it as a great way to spark conversations about wine and encourage people to drink according to their taste rather than following the bigger marketing budgets.
In the EU, this dispute might be resolved by the new mandatory labeling requirements on bottles. MS
