Beyoncé is not drunk in love with a small Brooklyn brewery — which she says used her name to sell beer without permission.
The 36-year-old “Single Ladies” singer is blocking Brooklyn Lineup Brewing in Sunset Park from selling more of its “Bïeryoncé” pilsner, which was made in her honor, the brewery owner said Tuesday.
“I was just trying to do something cool, in honor of a woman who’s all about breaking the glass ceiling — so I guess I thought she would think it was cool, too,” said owner Katarina Martinez, 30. “It is a little disappointing.”
Trouble bubbled up last week when Queen Bey fired off a cease and desist letter demanding the company shut down production of the small-batch suds, which feature the same pink lettering used on the star’s self-titled 2013 album, according to Martinez.
Martinez, who is a die-hard Beyonce fan, said she brewed about 150 cases of the beer last month to pay homage to the business-savvy singer.
She thought the “female-empowering” superstar wouldn’t mind because it was a limited-edition release and partly a spoof.
“We tried to make it a parody more than anything else, and we weren’t too worried because ‘Bieryonce’ isn’t actually her name. It isn’t even actually a word,” Martinez said.
The brewer will likely keep the same pilsner recipe — and simply change its name, she said.
Her company has already come up with other celebrity-inspired brews with nods to David Bowie, Carly Simon and Freddy Mercury.
“It’s still my beer and the actual recipe is proprietary and belongs to me. It doesn’t have to be named that and it won’t, moving forward, because [Beyonce] freaked out,” Martinez said.
“It wasn’t the response I expected from her [but] if she wants to crack open a couple Bieryonces and talk about it, I’d be totally open to that.”
https://twitter.com/FOTPBeyonceNews/status/939166829976719360
Source: Page Six
