A s’more martini made with Richardo’s Decaf Coffee Liqueur, right. (YouTube)
The town of Lyons is home to 2,200 people and two liqueur makers who don’t get along.
Richardo’s Liqueur is a small, niche company with one product: a small-batch decaf coffee liqueur that packs a wallop at 40 proof. Its formula is a secret. Or was, at least.
Spirit Hound Distillers was founded a dozen years ago. It was hit hard when floods rolled through Lyons in 2013 but has since thrived. It opened a Denver location in July.
The origins of their energized and spirited squabble over coffee booze date back to 2020.
That November, Richardo’s and Spirit Hound signed a so-called filling agreement in which Spirit Hound would bottle and sell Richardo’s liqueur at its tasting rooms and Richardo’s would pay Spirit Hound $7 per bottle. Richardo’s said that Spirit Hound signed a confidentiality agreement, promising to keep the Richardo’s formula a secret. Spirit Hound denies that.
Richardo’s now believes that their partnership was a ruse concocted by Spirit Hound to steal Richardo’s coveted formula for coffee liqueur. After getting its paws on the formula, Spirit Hound offered to buy it for “a paltry $25,000,” was rebuffed, and then threatened to make its own coffee liqueur from the same recipe, Richardo’s claims. Spirit Hound denies that too.
“Spirit Hound then completed its plan by telling a distributor … as well as retail stores that had previously sold Richardo’s and customers, that Richardo’s was out of business and would not be producing a coffee liqueur anymore,” Richardo’s said and Spirit Hound denied.
The two liqueur makers, who agree on almost nothing, agree that Spirit Hound ended their arrangement in 2022. But they disagree about who is to blame for that.
Spirit Hound said that it did so after realizing Richardo’s was incompetent. Richardo’s couldn’t timely supply the ingredients for its coffee liqueur, skipped meetings and lied about having government permits for distilling and selling booze, according to Spirit Hound.
Spirit Hound debuted its Cafe Colorado Coffee Liqueur earlier this year. (Spirit Hound/X)
“Richardo’s has taken an unfortunate step and has made baseless allegations against us,” Brad Stevenson, CEO of Spirit Hound, told BusinessDen in April, after Richardo’s sued his company. “These allegations are not true and … we have done nothing wrong.”
Spirit Hound asked Boulder District Court Judge Dea Lindsey to throw out the lawsuit this summer. She declined to do so but also declined to grant Richardo’s request for a restraining order that would have prevented Spirit Hound from selling a coffee liqueur.
Then, on Oct. 26, Spirit Hound countersued Richardo’s, claiming that the latter acted in bad faith when it concealed the fact that it couldn’t uphold its end of the partnership. A trial date has not yet been scheduled. Both sides want a jury, not a judge, to decide who’s right.
Richardo’s lawyer is Lawrence Katz of Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher in Denver. Spirit Hound is represented by Michael and Theodore Laszlo of LaszloLaw in Boulder.
Spirit Hound unveiled its 40-proof Cafe Colorado Coffee Liqueur earlier this year. More recently, it has begun selling a limited-release Peppermint Cafe Colorado Coffee Liqueur.
A s’more martini made with Richardo’s Decaf Coffee Liqueur, right. (YouTube)
The town of Lyons is home to 2,200 people and two liqueur makers who don’t get along.
Richardo’s Liqueur is a small, niche company with one product: a small-batch decaf coffee liqueur that packs a wallop at 40 proof. Its formula is a secret. Or was, at least.
Spirit Hound Distillers was founded a dozen years ago. It was hit hard when floods rolled through Lyons in 2013 but has since thrived. It opened a Denver location in July.
The origins of their energized and spirited squabble over coffee booze date back to 2020.
That November, Richardo’s and Spirit Hound signed a so-called filling agreement in which Spirit Hound would bottle and sell Richardo’s liqueur at its tasting rooms and Richardo’s would pay Spirit Hound $7 per bottle. Richardo’s said that Spirit Hound signed a confidentiality agreement, promising to keep the Richardo’s formula a secret. Spirit Hound denies that.
Richardo’s now believes that their partnership was a ruse concocted by Spirit Hound to steal Richardo’s coveted formula for coffee liqueur. After getting its paws on the formula, Spirit Hound offered to buy it for “a paltry $25,000,” was rebuffed, and then threatened to make its own coffee liqueur from the same recipe, Richardo’s claims. Spirit Hound denies that too.
“Spirit Hound then completed its plan by telling a distributor … as well as retail stores that had previously sold Richardo’s and customers, that Richardo’s was out of business and would not be producing a coffee liqueur anymore,” Richardo’s said and Spirit Hound denied.
The two liqueur makers, who agree on almost nothing, agree that Spirit Hound ended their arrangement in 2022. But they disagree about who is to blame for that.
Spirit Hound said that it did so after realizing Richardo’s was incompetent. Richardo’s couldn’t timely supply the ingredients for its coffee liqueur, skipped meetings and lied about having government permits for distilling and selling booze, according to Spirit Hound.
Spirit Hound debuted its Cafe Colorado Coffee Liqueur earlier this year. (Spirit Hound/X)
“Richardo’s has taken an unfortunate step and has made baseless allegations against us,” Brad Stevenson, CEO of Spirit Hound, told BusinessDen in April, after Richardo’s sued his company. “These allegations are not true and … we have done nothing wrong.”
Spirit Hound asked Boulder District Court Judge Dea Lindsey to throw out the lawsuit this summer. She declined to do so but also declined to grant Richardo’s request for a restraining order that would have prevented Spirit Hound from selling a coffee liqueur.
Then, on Oct. 26, Spirit Hound countersued Richardo’s, claiming that the latter acted in bad faith when it concealed the fact that it couldn’t uphold its end of the partnership. A trial date has not yet been scheduled. Both sides want a jury, not a judge, to decide who’s right.
Richardo’s lawyer is Lawrence Katz of Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher in Denver. Spirit Hound is represented by Michael and Theodore Laszlo of LaszloLaw in Boulder.
Spirit Hound unveiled its 40-proof Cafe Colorado Coffee Liqueur earlier this year. More recently, it has begun selling a limited-release Peppermint Cafe Colorado Coffee Liqueur.
