State Liquor Board Plans To Reconsider `Crazy Horse' Label

TACOMA - The state Liquor Control Board is reconsidering its decision to ban "Crazy Horse" beer on the basis that the name offends American Indians.

Congress last year passed a law banning the name. A few months later, the Washington State Liquor Control Board denied the beer label approval for sale in state stores, calling it "in bad taste."

But a federal judge in April overturned the law, saying it violated the free-speech rights of Don Vultaggio, the beer's marketer.

Now, Vultaggio has asked the Liquor Control Board to reconsider its decision.

Bottled by Brooklyn-based Hornell Brewing Company, Original Crazy Horse Malt Liquor is sold in about 40 states. Some states have banned the beer because the 40-ounce bottle is too large, Vultaggio said. But he said Washington is the only state to still ban the beer because of its name.

The state board is inviting the public to comment and will hold a public hearing Aug. 25 in Olympia.

"The (board) eventually will be making the decision, but they want to hear from the public," said Carter Mitchell, a Liquor Board spokesman. "If there is a lot of public outpouring, then the board might not grant it label approval."

Vultaggio says he never intended to offend anyone when he named the beer after Crazy Horse, the heroic warrior and spiritual leader of the Oglala Sioux Tribe in the 1800s. Vultaggio slapped an illustration on the bottle of an Indian in complete regalia, with headdress and rifle.

"There are beers named after other famous Americans. I think `Crazy Horse' is a great name," Vultaggio recently told The Morning News Tribune. "I don't see anything wrong with the name, just like I don't see anything wrong with a beer called Samuel Adams."

But the beer label hardly does the legendary Indian leader honor, opponents said.

"I don't see a beer called George Washington," said Michelle Aguilar, executive director of the Governor's Office on Indian Affairs. "This is offensive to us. It's disrespectful."

Opponents said the beer label is also insensitive to chronic alcohol problems among American Indians.