Tennessee ABC puts the smack down on Jell-O shots

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Category: Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission, ABC, infused liquor

02.13.18

Source: TMAB2003 on Flikr

Late last year, we began hearing from restaurants and bars that were being cited for unlabeled Jell-O shots. It seems the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (ABC) is treating this all-American treat as an infused beverage.

Although we disagree with the ABC’s conclusion that Jell-O shots are an infusion, we lack an army of agents out in the field — busily issuing citations. Better label your favorite delightful slurpable treats, or face fines.

Here’s the fun part. There are no rules for how to label infusions. Current Tennessee law merely states that “a batch of infused product shall be labeled with a list of each ingredient contained in the infusion.”

We suggest that each batch contain the date it was made, the ingredients and the name of the infusion.

Jell-O shots are not an infusion, in our humble opinion. An infusion “is not intended for immediate consumption.” The infusion statute applies to mixtures that steep or ferment “over a sustained period of time.” Infusions are not intended to apply to mixtures that need to chill, such as frozen drinks, or jell, like Jell-O shots.

Given the ongoing confusion over infusions, we recommend that folks also label all pre-batched cocktails. Why not? It’s easy, not a bad idea, and could save you a few hundred bucks next time your friendly ABC agent stops by for a visit.

We are going to need a serious cocktail to get the Jell-O song out of our heads:

Watch it glimmer

See it shimmer

Cool and fruity

Jell-O brand gelatin

If that didn’t stick the song in your head, check out the vintage 1979 commercial: