Colt 45 makers under fire over new flavored booze

Rapper Snoop Dogg has been asked to withdraw his endorsement of the controversial Blast beverage. STORY HIGHLIGHTSBlast is a fruity new blend boasting twice the alcohol The drink resembles a soda, but has 12% alcoholRapper Snoop Dogg is endorsing the fruity drink The drink's marketing outrages some politicians and advocacy groups RELATED TOPICSPabst Blue RibbonAlcohol ConsumptionSnoop Dogg New York (CNN) -- The makers of Colt 45 malt liquor have stirred up a controversy with their new beverage that some fear will encourage kids to drink.

Blast is a fruity new blend boasting twice the alcohol as Pabst Brewing Co.'s original malt liquor.

The drink in a colorful 23.5-ounce can resembles soda pop but has an alcohol content of 12%, more potent than a typical can of beer.

"Colt 45 makers are raising the alcohol level from the already high 6% to the even higher 12%, and enticing young people with hip hop themes and lollipop flavors," said Paul Porter of Industry Ears, a think tank that promotes justice in the media.

Porter said the company is "expanding its market with our children."

Blast joins the ranks of some high octane drinks such as Four Loko, Joose and Tilt that came under fire late last year for advertising to underage consumers.

Popular rapper Snoop Dogg is the front man endorsing Blast who -- according to a distributor marketing video -- "has the ability to take Colt 45 brands to a whole new level."

But the brand's marketing tactics have outraged some politicians and advocacy groups who question whom the company is really targeting.

"It's disappointing to see him and the utilization of hip hop music to promote an alcoholic beverage that is so dangerous to youth today," said Jorge Castillo, Advocacy and Outreach manager at Marin Institute.

In a letter, New York City Councilman Robert Jackson asked Snoop Dogg to withdraw his endorsement and look at this from a father's perspective.

"I'm sure that you don't want people marketing to your children to have them drink this alcohol pop," Jackson said in a letter. He said he has not received a reply, but plans to follow up with the rapper.

Blast is gaining momentum.

"Last weekend I sold about 12 cans; they're becoming really popular," said Gurcharn Singh, who owns a deli near New York University campus.

Singh recalled a few cases where underage youth tried to buy the alcoholic beverage.

"Blast is only meant to be consumed by those above legal drinking age," Jon Sayer, chief marketing officer of Pabst Brewing Co., said in a statement.

"As with all Pabst products, our marketing efforts for Blast are focused on conveying the message of drinking responsibly. To that end, the alcohol content of Blast is clearly marked on its packaging."

Students around NYU say the drink's attractive design and low price could potentially be dangerous for a young consumer.

"It's bigger than a normal can size, people don't take that into account when they're drinking it," said student Ashima Talwar.

Student Sadik Uddin said it does not look like an alcoholic drink.

"They dressed it up to look like a soda drink. I think the design is pretty cool. I would probably assume it's a sports drink and gone for it," the 21-year-old said.

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Study: Alcohol-energy drink combo riskier than booze alone

By Durell Hall, Courier-Journal

Research indicates that drinkers are more likely to drive if they mix alcohol with energy drinks.

EnlargeCloseBy Durell Hall, Courier-Journal

Research indicates that drinkers are more likely to drive if they mix alcohol with energy drinks.

Adding to growing research on the effects of trendy cocktails such as vodka and the energy drink Red Bull, scientists from Northern Kentucky University split 56 college students between the ages of 21 and 33 into four groups. The students received either an alcoholic beverage, an energy drink, a mixed drink with both ingredients, or a placebo.

All drinks were made to look and taste like alcoholic energy drinks, so participants did not know which they were consuming. Researchers measured how quickly the students could execute and suppress actions after the dose and asked them to rate feelings such as stimulation, sedation, impairment and levels of intoxication.

All of the students who drank alcohol showed impaired impulse control. But those who drank the alcoholic energy drink perceived themselves to be less impaired than those who drank the same dose of alcohol alone, the study authors said, which could make them more likely to take risks such as driving while intoxicated.

"This study demonstrates these drinks are different. .. and consumers should be aware," said study author Cecile Marczinski, an assistant professor in the department of psychological science. "It might be appropriate to put warning labels on energy drinks saying they should not be mixed with alcohol."

While combining alcohol with caffeinated beverages is nothing new

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Moms angry after kids were served booze at chains 1,000 miles apart

Jill Vanheest's 2-year-old son was given sangria on March 31 at an Olive Garden in Florida. STORY HIGHLIGHTSA Florida mother says of Olive Garden: "They poisoned my child right in front of me"Her toddler was taken to the hospital after being served sangria at a Florida restaurant8 days later, a Michigan boy was served alcohol at an Applebee's franchiseBoth chains apologized and vowed to change their drink-serving policiesRELATED TOPICSApplebee's International Inc.Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (CNN) -- Two mothers expressed outrage Friday night that their young children -- about 1,000 miles away and days apart -- were inadvertently given alcohol by servers at franchises of national chain restaurants.

Jill Vanheest, whose 2-year-old son was given sangria on March 31 at an Olive Garden in Lakeland, Florida, told HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell that she's having difficulty accepting what happened.

"They poisoned my child right in front of me," Vanheest said Friday. "There aren't really words for how distrustful that makes me feel, how angry I am."

Just over a week later, on April 8, Taylor Dill-Reese said that her 15-month-old son was given alcohol during a meal -- rather than the apple juice he'd ordered -- at an Applebee's in Madison Heights, Michigan.

She said that the staff there explained that the boy got the wrong drink due to a mix-up at the bar, after containers for apple juice and margarita mix (which has tequila and triple sec) were somehow switched.

This week, Applebee's issued a statement apologizing to the parents of Dominic Wilson Jr. "for the stress and worry this caused them." It vowed to immediately retrain servers on the company's "beverage pouring policy" and change to pouring apple juice only from single-serve containers, like a juice box.

"We recognize our responsibility to constantly assess our safety policies and procedures to ensure they are rigorous and consistently followed," the Kansas-based chain said. "We believe today's strong actions make a statement to our guests of all ages around our commitment to provide a safe and enjoyable dining experience."

But Dill-Reese told Velez-Mitchell on Friday that she's not convinced.

The mother, who is 18 and was at the restaurant with her son and fiance, said she was particularly angry given that a similar incident happened before at Applebee's -- namely, a 2006 case in which a 5-year-old boy was given a Long Island iced tea, which contains rum, gin, vodka and tequila, at a New York City establishment of the national chain.

"it's just sad, the simple fact that this isn't the first time this happened (or) that they were going to change the way they were going to serve drinks," the mother said. "Why wait two, three kids later to change the way you serve drinks? What if my son was the one that died?"

Steven Krawitz, a personal injury attorney who represented the family involved in the 2006 case, told HLN that -- whatever Applebee's and other restaurant's promises to change their policies for serving drinks to children -- a parent should never rely on a server fully when their son or daughter gets a beverage.

"The parent, unfortunately, cannot now trust what used to be a no-brainer," Krawitz said. "Restaurants are serving drinks for kids, millions of drinks, but now, given this sort of rash of ... unavoidable or unacceptable mistakes, the parents now have to test the drink."

Police were called to the Applebee's in Michigan after Dill-Reese and her fiance noticed Dominic acting strangely -- "saying 'hi' and 'bye' to the walls (and) laid his head down like he was sleepy, then woke up and got really hyper," recalled the mother.

Once a server told the parents that the boy was given margarita mix, he was rushed to the hospital, where Dill-Reese said he had a blood-alcohol limit of .10. Applebee's, though, said that Madison Heights police conducted a field test and found the drink itself only registered a .014 alcohol level.

While Dill-Reese has already filed a lawsuit against Applebee's, Vanheest said she has not decided whether to do the same against Olive Garden.

Vanheest claims that her son, Nikolai, ordered an orange juice and started drinking it. But then a waiter "came over and said there's been a mistake, grabbed the cup and kind of scurried away."

Meanwhile, her son "was not acting like himself" -- climbing in and out of his high chair and people's laps, not responding to requests to calm down, and "just getting louder and louder."

When the restaurant's staff admitted that the boy had gotten sangria, which contains wine, the child was brought to the hospital. After some struggle, he was given intravenous fluids and had his blood drawn before being checked and eventually released.

"He ended up with a lot of bruises," Vanheest said.

After the incident came to light, Olive Garden released a statement in which it called the incident "unacceptable." The chain, which is headquartered in Orlando, Florida, said "we have implemented a change in our procedures to prevent this situation from happening again" -- though it didn't detail what those changes were.

"We take the responsibility that comes with serving alcohol seriously," the statement said. "As much as we strive for perfection, this was an unfortunate case of human error."

But Vanheest, the toddler's mother, said she's not yet ready to forgive.

"Just that their disorganization allowed this ever to happen -- it's extremely frustrating," she said. "I've lost all trust and all faith in them."

Watch ISSUES with Jane Velez-Mitchell Monday through Sunday at 7pm ET on HLN. For the latest from ISSUES click here.

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