Brewery behind 'Barely Legal' beer responds to backlash over 'gross' name
The new beer has been called out for being 'insensitive and offensive'.
The name of a new craft beer, Barely Legal, has been called out online for being "insensitive and offensive" with claims it shows a "total disregard for women".
The marketing around the new release by Queensland-based Blackflag Brewing has also been slammed by the likes of feminist commentator Clementine Ford and women in the beer industry, with one branding picture said to mimic the logo of the world's largest porn site, Porn Hub.
Instagram page 'Chicks Invented Beer' called out the company's branding in a post on Wednesday. The name "creates a culture where sexism and sexualising minors is not only accepted but celebrated," it reads. "This ultimately impacts the safety of minorities, in this case women and minors".
Ms Ford shared the post on her own account which boasts 231,000 followers. "What a totally interesting and funny name for a beer that doesn't in any way imply you're a bunch of creeps with a sh*tty sense of humous and total disregard for women," she said on Wednesday.
Musician Libby O'Donovan also chimed in to say it's "f***ing gross", before taking aim at the beer's alcohol content. A single Bareley Legal beer contains 18.1 per cent alcohol which Ms O'Donovan argues is "totally geared towards getting sh*tfaced". The average beer is about 5 per cent.
Beer company pulls social posts, issue an apology
The backlash has resulted in the company pulling the marketing material from its social pages. They also offered an apology. The brewery admitted the now-deleted post "went down terribly for some" but said there were "no ill intentions" when revealing the name and the marketing material attached to the new beer.
Explaining the meaning behind the name, the brewery said it refers to entering the legal age to drink in Australia — which is 18. "It's the coming of age," the company explained. "What that means and what you learn".
The alcohol volume of 18.1 per cent is derived from the same meaning, they explained — being "just over the limit", denying suggestions it refers to young women.
Company explains intentions behind beer name
In a statement to the industry site Crafty Pint, Blackflag Brewing further explained the imagery used.
"We designed the imagery around what is a known brand after you turn 18," it said in a statement. "The aim was to attach to an image that is known by people when they turn 18. We designed a few different images around the pretence of when you become an adult."
The craft beer is set to appear as a Festival Beer at this year's GABS, with organisers also issuing a statement on the matter. Festival organisers said they released the name, Barley Legal, four weeks ago, and had "absolutely no negative feedback at all".
"We have received only two emails, both from [female team members], raising concerns the beer name 'could be interpreted' differently to what it may have been intended, which are being addressed," the statement to Crafty Pint said. "Our head of Festival Beer is distraught by this potential interpretation of the innuendo in the name as, with the information on hand, it was never a consideration."
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