A legal battle is heating up between Tabasco’s owner McIlhenny Company and the vodka maker Stoli Group USA. McIlhenny filed a complaint against Stoli for trademark infringement on Jan. 16, following the release of Stoli’s chile pepper-flavored vodka.
The filing alleges the Stoli Halapeño Pepper’s product and design infringe upon Tabasco’s trademark and trade dress. Bottles of Stoli’s new spicy vodka look suspiciously similar to a bottle of Tabasco and are “likely to cause confusion among consumers about the source,” the complaint reads. In addition to a red screw top and green wrapping along the bottleneck, the Halapeño Pepper packaging boasts a green, red, and white circular stamp — which the suit alleges is a direct dupe of Tabasco’s iconic diamond label.
