Bethenny Frankel's SkinnyGirl Tequila Quality Challenged in Lawsuit
The filers of a $10 million suit earlier this year have issued new challenges to the reality star's margarita mix.
Bethenny Frankel had sold her SkinnyGirl Margarita brand last year for a pretty penny – a reported $120 million to be exact – yet it still continues to haunt her.
PHOTOS: Hollywood In The Hamptons
A $10 million lawsuit charging that the company lied about the product’s all natural ingredients filed earlier this year has been amended citing the label’s description of its tequila content as misleading, reports The New York Post.
Apparently, the SkinnyGirl Margarita label had advertised that it’s made with "100 percent blue agave tequila," but the lawsuit filed by Christopher Rapcinsky and Erin Baker contends that it most likely uses "a lower quality and purity tequila by-product called mixto - essentially a mash of tequila and some unknown additives (rarely organic) which may comprise as much as 49 percent of the final mixed liquor."
The suit alleges that after Frankel sold the company to Beam Global, it removed the “100 percent” claim and replaced it with the statement, "with premium Blue Agave tequila." That change makes it so that any amount of the alcohol would meet the company’s claim, yet the suit says it’s still “extremely misleading.”
PHOTOS: Hollywood's Twitter Feuds
Beam Global dismisses the case as “frivolous,” and submitted a statement to the newspaper saying, "Skinnygirl Margarita is made with premium blue agave tequila and meets the highest quality standards. We will defend our case vigorously, and we are fully confident we will prevail."
Frankel isn’t named as a defendant in the suit, because she’s no longer the pre-made mix line's owner. But, she defended the brand in September against charges that the cocktail mix contained preservatives despite the company’s claim that it was “all natural” and contained “no preservatives.”
At the time, a Beam Global company rep confirmed, "Skinnygirl Margarita contains very low levels of sodium benzoate (a preservative) so it can stay on the shelves."
Frankel later said in a statement on her website that “The Skinnygirl Margarita is made with natural ingredients and its label is consistent with U.S. federal regulations.”
THR has requested comment on the new charges, but Frankel’s reps did not immediately respond.
THR's Daily Must Feeds
-
Leonardo DiCaprio Raises $1.5 Million at amfAR Cannes Gala
-
Watch 4 New Scenes From 'Arrested Development'
-
Mariah Carey: Wardrobe Malfunction on 'Good Morning America'
-
Director Responds To Boos For Ryan Gosling Film
-
'Rocky Horror' Actor Tim Curry Suffers Stroke
-
'Star Trek' Legend Rates New Movie
-
The Year of Rock: How the Former Wrestler Became King of the Action-Cinema Ring
-
James Van Der Beek on Putting 'Dawson' Behind Him and 'Don’t Trust the B’s' Hulu Finale
In This Week's Magazine
- MOST SHARED
- MOST POPULAR
- 1
'Big Bang Theory' Cast Shares Their Favorite Season 6 Moments
- 2
Jimmy Kimmel Revealed as Buyer of $1.9 Million Bea Arthur Nude Painting
- 3
From Flappers to Rappers: 'The Great Gatsby' Music Supervisor Breaks Down the Film's Soundtrack
- 4
'How I Met Your Mother' Reveals the Mother (Video)
- 5
Box Office Report: 'Fast 6' Passes 'Hangover III,' Eyeing $100 Million-Plus Memorial Day Debut
- 6
Netflix's Ted Sarandos Reveals His 'Phase 2' for Hollywood
- 7
Convicted Girls Gone Wild Mogul Joe Francis Breaks Silence: 'Retarded' Jury 'Should Be Shot Dead'
- 8
'Arrested Development' Stars' Surprising Salaries Revealed (Exclusive)
- 9
Mike Darnell Exits as Fox Reality Boss
- 10
Box Office Report: 'Fast 6' Earns $6.5 Mil Thursday Night, Prepares to Overtake 'Hangover III'



