Twisted Tea Manufacturers Won't Sponsor Puncher in Viral 'TeaKO' Video

The manufacturer behind Twisted Tea, the Boston Beer Company, has apparently confirmed it will not [...]

By Michael Hein

The manufacturer behind Twisted Tea, the Boston Beer Company, has apparently confirmed it will not be doing any promotional deals with the man from last month's viral video. The clip showed Barry Allen hitting a racist in the face with a Twisted Tea can so hard that it broke at an Ohio convenience store. Followers have called for Allen to get a promotional deal ever since, but on Sunday, Allen's wife revealed that that will not be the case.

Allen's wife made a Twitter account under the name "Mrs. TeaKO" to keep up with the memes about Allen's incendiary fight. On Wednesday, she posted a note explaining that the family had been in contact with the Boston Beer Company — at their followers' insistence. On Sunday, she posted screenshots of emails with the company, revealing that they will not be working together going forward. This left many of them disappointed, and some even proposed a boycott.

Followers wanted Allen to get some kind of sponsorship from Twisted Tea and the Boston Beer Company considering his video made the brand go viral around the holidays. "Twisted Tea" was trending on Twitter, and memes proliferated across all different formats. Many compare this to the case of Nathan Apodaca, who got a lucrative sponsorship deal with Ocean Spray after his video went viral in the summer.

Obviously, the subject matter of Allen's video is more heated, though he and his wife argue that that should not keep Boston Beer Company from choosing a side. The company's email listed the ways it tries to fight against racism, but Allen's wife argued that anti-racist publicity is just as important.

"The greatest way we can champion equality and end racism and discrimination is to continue our work with partners like the NAACP. In moments like this, rather than focusing on us, we think the focus should be on the bigger issue of ending racism," read the company's email.

"Wanting the non-racist label but not agreeing with the violence that has come with it is hypocrisy!" Allen's wife responded. "I hate to put it to terms but your company focused on the can instead of the hurtful racial slurs coming from the other gentleman. So I have to respectfully say that I do feel as many that you guys missed a wonderful opportunity to show people that you truly are against racism."

As many followers know, Allen and his family have been trying to raise money for their son's medical bills since long before the Twisted Tea video went viral. They have gotten lots of support in recent weeks, and their GoFundMe campaign remains active at the time of this writing.

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