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04/07/2008
Boston Beer Company Voluntarily Recalls Select
Bottles of Samuel Adams
The Boston
Beer Company (BBC) today announced a voluntary recall of select
12 oz glass bottles of its Samuel Adams beer which may contain small
grains or bits of glass. The precautionary recall comes after routine
quality control inspections at the Company's Cincinnati brewery
detected defects in certain beer bottles, manufactured by a third-party
glass bottle supplier that might cause small bits of glass to break
off and possibly fall into the bottle. The affected bottles come
from only one of the five glass plants that supply the Company with
bottles. This plant supplies about 25% of BBC bottles. While the
Company believes that the number of bottles from this plant that
actually contain glass is significantly less than 1%, it took this
measure to protect the safety of its drinkers.
The affected
products are embossed on the base of the bottles with the following
marking: The letter "N" followed by the number "35"
followed by the letters "OI".
The following
products are not being recalled:
- Samuel Adams
draft beer
- 24oz bottles
of Samuel Adams
- Samuel Adams
Utopias
- Samuel Adams
Triple Bock Bottles with embossed code N08 followed by the letters
"OI"
- Bottles
with embossed code N17 followed by the letters "OI"
- Bottles
with embossed code N26 followed by the letters "OI"
- Bottles
with embossed code N31 followed by the letters "OI"
The products
affected by the Boston Beer recall are embossed on the base of the
bottles with the following marking: The letter "N" followed
by the number "35" followed by the letters "OI".
Consumers
who have purchased beer in the defective bottles are advised not
to drink it and dispose of the product. The Company will issue a
full refund on potentially affected product.
The Company
has had no reports of any consumer injury but the presence of small
bits of glass in the bottle could pose a health risk under certain
circumstances. While the possibility of injury to an individual
consumer is very low, people who bite or swallow a fragment could
possibly be injured. Anyone who has consumed beer from an affected
bottle and becomes ill, or shows signs of complications, should
see a physician immediately.
Boston Beer
has stopped distributing all products in the defective bottles.
Additionally, the Company's direction to its wholesalers is to hold
all of the affected products in their warehouses, and to remove
it from retail shelves immediately.
For additional
information, consumers are encouraged to contact The Boston Beer
Company at 1-888-674-5159 or access the company's recall Web site
at http://consumerinfo.samadams.com.
"We are
disappointed and disturbed by this development, and we are doing
everything we can to address the situation," said Jim Koch,
founder and brewer of the Boston Beer Company. "Since our founding,
we have never issued a product recall for any reason, and are deeply
disappointed that these bottles did not meet our quality standards.
Brewing great beer is not enough. Because of these bottles supplied
to us from an outside vendor, we didn't live up to our drinker's
expectations. Our brewers, management, and all employees remain
committed to doing everything possible to resolve this situation
quickly, and to ensure the safety of our drinkers and the quality
of our beer."
Contact: The
Boston Beer Company, Michelle Sullivan, 617-368-5165 or e-mail michelle.sullivan@bostonbeer.com
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