Is polygamy-themed vodka offensive to Mormons?

June 4, 2012 By

The Associated Press has a story about a regulatory agency in Idaho banning the sale of a particular type of vodka on quasi-religious concerns:

SALT LAKE CITY — Five Wives Vodka was named in bad taste and won’t be stocked or special ordered at stores operated by the state of Idaho, regulators said.

The middle-shelf vodka is made by Ogden’s Own Distillery in Utah, where the Mormon church is based. Its label carries the name and an image of five women, an apparent reference to polygamy, a practice abandoned by the church more than a century ago.

Idaho State Liquor Division administrator Jeff Anderson said the brand is offensive to Mormons who make up over a quarter of Idaho’s population.

We then get a quote from Mr. Anderson that refers to a “prominent segment of our population” that would be offended by the brand concept. And then he acknowledges that Five Wives had masterful marketing but that “it doesn’t play here.”

And I guess when you’re the guy who gets to decide unilaterally whether something has the right to be sold in your state, you can say stuff like that.

But before I get up on my libertarian soap box, I just have some journalism questions, which is what we need to focus on.

If The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints banned polygamy 100 years ago, which is another way of saying that the church does not permit polygamy, I have no idea why the branding is offensive to members of that church body. A vague comment from Mr. Chief Regulator isn’t quite sufficient to establish the claim.

But the other big vodka-soaked elephant in the room is that Five Wives Vodka is, as you may have gathered, a type of alcohol. Mormon teachings forbid the drinking of alcohol. Perhaps some Mormons might be more “offended” by alcohol than a polygamy reference. Why would Mormons be offended by a polygamy reference on a liquor bottle? Perhaps there’s a good answer there, but I didn’t see it in this story.

The rest of the article has great detail about how Ogden’s Own Distillery is trying to turn potatoes into, well, vodka by publicizing Idaho’s rejection and selling “Free The Five Wives” T-shirts. We’re reminded of Utah’s own Polygamy Porter (the regulatory process for approving beer sales is different from liquor sales, apparently).

We’re also told that the regulatory boards in Utah didn’t ban the sale of Five Wives there.

Nobody in Utah is raising a fuss over the brand, said Vickie Ashby, a spokeswoman for the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Utah regulates all sales of hard liquor, wine and heavy beer, making the products available only at state-owned stores. Idaho and Wyoming control liquor sales with a mix of state-owned and privately-operated stores.

Cute story and some great details, but more explanation of the religion angle may have been helpful.

I did rather enjoy this backgrounder in the Salt Lake Tribune on the image used for the Vodka.

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Filed Under: Journalism, Mormons
  • Jettboy

    Yes. Yes I am offended and therefore am for once glad someone stood up for the Mormons retroactively. Good job Idaho from at least one Idaho Mormon. The distilleries explanation doesn’t wash around here.

  • Suzanne

    So is Cardinal Zin wine next? :)

  • Julia

    You have to read the SLT news article explaining why these girls are holding kitties. I hadn’t even noticed them.
    Reminds me of the song in “Mame” by the woman with the trumpet dressed like a Roman warrior – “You Gotta Have A Gimic”. Hysterical and way more offensive (not just to Mormons) than the Idaho Liquor Commissioner would ever guess.

  • Passing By

    You are thinking about Gypsy, Julia, and it was sung by several strippers trying to show Louise (Gypsy Rose Lee) how to make it in burlesque. I’m not sure what’s offensive in that contact, our what identity group might be offended.

  • Julia

    Yup, it’s Gypsy. I get the musicals with the loud-mouthed middle-aged women mixed up.

    I think the girls and their kitties are just generally offensive – no identity group needed. You’ll understand if you read the article.

  • sari

    Why has no one interviewed PETA about the possibility that kittens might be similarly hurt by present day copycats?

  • Passing By

    I thought you meant the song in was offensive. I thought it was funny, but I’m not a very nice person, so thought it might be me.

    I didn’t see the kittens before.

  • Taylor

    A popular local beer around here in Salt Lake City is Polygamy Porter which has a small caption on it saying “why just have one?” This Mormon finds it hilarious, so I don’t really know what the problem is.

  • cvg

    Seems pretty funny to me.

  • heidi

    I suppose it might be offensive, but I’m willing to bet that most Mormons aren’t going to go out and buy or drink this–so who cares? Not this Mormon.

  • sari

    On a more serious note, the following questions should have been asked:
    How did the issue come to the Idaho State Liquor Division administrator’s attention? Did members of LDS complain? Is he Mormon? Was his a unilateral decision, made independently of other governmental authorities? Is there precedent in Idaho (e.g., have other products been banned from the shelves because their labels are deemed offensive by one religion or another?). Are the owners of Ogden’s Own Mormon (a small subset of Mormons engage in moneymaking industries from which they, themselves, are forbidden to partake)? And as has been noted, why were members of Idaho’s Mormon community not solicited for their views?

  • Julia

    Passing By:

    I thought of the song b/c the sisters were using these kitties as their gimic in a burlesque-like stage act.

  • http://authenticbioethics.blogspot.com AuthenticBioethics

    Um, who says the 5 Wives all belong to the same husband….? It is apparently part of the persona the distillery wants for the brand because no one from there raised this point. A spokesman could easily have said, “Why ban it for suggesting polygamy when there could be 5 husbands involved? Really, where are the husbands? They’re out drinking vodka. These are the wives they’ll come home to. Heh, heh.” The background on the women in the SLT article would not support these particular women being anyone’s wives, by the way, let alone all wives of one man.

    Honestly, I personally find many wine and liquor labels to be clever, but others fail and end up being offensive and juvenile in the attempt. I don’t buy them. I wish my state had a little higher standards. Maybe not as high as Idaho, but higher.

  • John Penta

    I was unaware there were standards at all for liquor labels…