Bombay Sapphire Class Action Says Gin Contains Illegal Ingredient

A class action lawsuit claims that Bacardi’s Bombay Sapphire Gin contains Grains of Paradise, which is illegal in the state of Florida.

Plaintiff Uri Marrache says the gin’s label states that “every drop contains 10 hand selected botanicals from exotic locations around the world.” One of those botanicals is reportedly Grains of Paradise.

The Bacardi class action lawsuit alleges that Grains of Paradise is known for its warming and digestive characteristics. The class action lawsuit also states that Grains of Paradise has a binomial name Aframomum melegueta and comes from swampy areas along the West African coast.

“Additionally, Grains of Paradise has been used in other parts of the world for medicinal purposes including, without limitation, to treat impotence and to stimulate miscarriages when a pregnancy was unwanted,” the Bombay Sapphire class action lawsuit claims.

The Bacardi class action lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated Florida statute 562.455 which states that “Whoever adulterates for the purpose of sale, any liquor, used or intended for drink, with cocculus indicus, vitriol, grains of paradise, opium, alum, capsicum, copperas, laurel water, logwood, brazil wood, cochineal, sugar of lead, or any other substance which is poisonous or injurious to health, and whoever, knowingly sells any liquor so adulterated shall be guilty of a felony of the third degree.”

Marrache also alleges that Winn-Dixie Supermarkets sell the adulterated liquor, which is also against Florida law.

The Bombay Sapphire Gin class action lawsuit claims that Bacardi violated the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act by adulterating a liquor in violation of Florida law. 

Marrache says Bacardi received money that belonged to the plaintiff and the members of the putative Class who were influenced into purchasing the adulterated liquor using unfair and deceptive trade practices.

In addition, the Bombay Sapphire class action lawsuit claims that Bacardi violated the same law by selling an adulterated liquor in violation of Florida law.  

In a separate count of unjust enrichment, the plaintiff alleges that he has “conferred benefits” to the defendants by purchasing their adulterated products.  

“As a direct and proximate result of the aforementioned acts by the defendants, defendants has [sic] been unjustly enriched and Plaintiff and members of the class who were induced into purchasing Bombay Sapphire gin are entitled to a return of the value of the benefit conferred upon defendants as alleged herein,” the Bombay Sapphire Gin class action continues to state.

The Bacardi class action lawsuit claims that the exact number of possible Class Members is not available to the plaintiff, but will be able to be determined from records which are maintained by the defendants.  

The plaintiff states that he believes there are “hundreds of thousands” of potential Class Members and most of them are not aware that they have claims against the company.  

That said, Marrache says that whether or not they are aware, their claims have damages that are “too small to justify the expense of a separate lawsuit” and that put together, they make the lawsuit financially more convenient.

Marrache is represented by Roniel Rodriguez IV PA and Maury Udell of Beighley Myrick Udell & Lynne PA.

The Bombay Sapphire Gin Illegal Ingredient Class Action Lawsuit is Uri Marrache v. Bacardi USA Inc., et al., Case No. 2019-023668-CA-01, in the Circuit Court of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit In and For Miami-Dade County, Florida.

UPDATE: On Oct. 4, 2019, Bacardi filed a motion to dismiss a class action lawsuit filed by a consumer who claims that the company’s Bombay Sapphire Gin contains Grains of Paradise, which is illegal in the state of Florida.

UPDATE 2: On Jan. 28, 2020, the Bombay Sapphire Gin class action lawsuit that alleges Bacardi uses an illegal ingredient in its gin was dismissed by a Florida federal judge who found that the plaintiff’s claims were preempted by federal law.

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