SHOREHAM, Vt. (AP) — A vodka maker in New York has sued Vermont's rye whiskey distiller WhistlePig over its use of the word "crop" to describe its new whiskey product.
The Burlington Free Press reports the battle is over the New York's Chatham Imports' patented Crop Harvest Earth Organic vodka. Chatham's attorney said in a letter last month the vodka is well known and widely distributed.
WhistlePig says in response that its new product, FarmStock whiskey, and Chatham's product are entirely different both in appearance and commercial impression.
WhistlePig's new rye whiskey is made in Shoreham, Vermont. The label on the whiskey bottle has the designation of the rye crop number, for example the first batch of bottles says "Crop No. 001." That designation forms the basis for Chatham's lawsuit.
