E-Malt.com News article: Australia: Carlton & United Breweries defends its ownership of a number of heritage brands

Carlton & United Breweries has defeated an attempt by upstart brewer Thunder Road to poach a swag of heritage brands such as Abbots Lager, Cairns Draught, Tooth's, McCracken's and Brisbane Bitter, The Australian reported on September 11.

The Australian Trade Marks Office denied a request from Melbourne-based Thunder Road to strike out CUB's ownership of 59 brews no longer made by the beer giant, including Ballarat Bitter, Richmond Lager, Kent, NQ Lager and Bulimba Gold Top.

Thunder Road had argued that the company should be forced to relinquish the brands given it hadn't used them for decades, and planned to release its own beers under the same names had it been able to re-register them.

CUB's On Premise Sales Director Paul Donaldson said the company would occasionally produce the old beers in limited quantities, but there wasn't enough demand to make them part of regular production.

"CUB submitted extensive evidence as to the value of the heritage Trade Marks, their residual fame, their importance to CUB and its heritage," he said of the trademark case.

"CUB also submitted evidence of the many releases of heritage brands over the years and those brands we have in the pipeline".

The company released McCracken's and Richmond Lager to a number of Victorian pubs in July, while in Queensland it had released NQ Lager and Cairns Draught and the Steyne Hotel in Sydney's eastern suburb of Manly had Tooth's White Horse Ale on tap.


13 September, 2013