Idaho Liquor Division relents (sort of) on "Five Wives" vodka

By Associated Press, Updated: Wednesday, June 6, 7:48 PM

BOISE, Idaho — Idaho reversed direction in the face of a lawsuit Wednesday and said it will sell Five Wives Vodka, but the liquor producer whose label makes an unmistakable reference to polygamy would not immediately rule out legal action.

The Idaho State Liquor Division rejected as offensive last week the product that features an antiqued sketch of five women hiking up their skirts. Idaho is more than 25 percent Mormon and the church at one time allowed polygamy but abandoned the practice in 1890.

The vodka originates from Ogden’s Own Distillery in Utah, where the Mormon church is based. The company said it would sue Idaho on principle if necessary.

Then on Wednesday George Washington University professor Jonathan Turley in a letter to Idaho officials and posted on his website said he planned to sue on behalf of the producer of Five Wives Vodka. He called the ban unconstitutional and gave the state 10 days to reverse its position.

The state only took hours:

“In a shared desire to avoid unnecessary litigation costs to Ogden’s Own Distillery and the people of Idaho, today we have informed the makers of ‘Five Wives’ vodka that we will immediately begin processing special order requests for both on-premise licensees and retail consumers,” Anderson said in a statement Wednesday afternoon.

Steve Conlin, a partner and marketing chief for Ogden’s Own Distillery, said Wednesday the company’s attorneys would review Idaho’s decision before making a statement, likely on Thursday.

But he said selling the vodka as a special order request meant it wouldn’t be available on store shelves but only as a special order. Bars would face the same hurdle.

“It’s a cumbersome process on special orders,” Conlin said. “But I’m not saying that it’s not a solution for us at this point. I can’t say one way or the other right now.”

The company is also apparently still smarting from comments made by state officials questioning the quality of Five Wives Vodka as part of the state’s initial decision not to sell it in Idaho.

Anderson, in a letter to alcohol distribution company Elite Spirits Distribution owner John Challenger and officials at Ogden’s Own Distillery informing them of the change in Idaho’s policy, included an apology that wasn’t a part of his public statement.

“I apologize for comments reported in the media that may have led consumers to believe ‘Five Wives’ is an inferior vodka product,” Anderson wrote. A copy of the letter, obtained by The Associated Press, was also sent to Idaho Deputy Attorney General Tim Davis.

Turley did not respond to an email Wednesday evening concerning the change in Idaho’s position and his website had not been updated to reflect the change either. Earlier he wrote, “Idaho is the only state to raise religious and social sensibilities as a basis to deny entry to this product.”

Five Wives Vodka was first sold in Utah in December 2011. Shortly after the ban was announced in Idaho the company started selling T-shirts with the five women behind bars and the caption “Free the Five Wives.”

Conlin said the publicity from the ban has been good for the company but hasn’t boosted sales much because the vodka has only been available in Utah.

Villa Coffeehouse has new owners

Chip and Alexis Langerak, the Villa Coffeehouse's new owners

The Villa Coffeehouse in downtown Idaho Falls has new owners, Alexis and Chip Langerak, who boiught the property in February but had a ribbon cutting Wednesday morning.

Both were fans of the place -- he likes coffee, she likes tea -- when they learned last fall the business was for sale. Alexis Langerak comes from a background in software training and conversions, while Chip Langerak is a shift manager at the Utah Avenue Wal-Mart.

They plan to carry on with much of what went before -- fresh roasted coffee, more than 100 varieties of tea -- and would like to expand the menuu for baked goods, featuring goodies made from scratch. The Villa has its own house blend of coffee, developed for them by Steve and Harry's, a local roaster, and has begun sellingg Steve and Harry's espresso as well.er

Museum of Idaho prepares for King Tut opening June 15

Tutankhamen is perhaps Egypt's best known pharaoh because of the wealth of treasures -- including a solid gold death mask -- found during the surprise discovery of his intact tomb in 1922.

It's been almost 90 years since archaeologist Howard Carter opened the tomb of the Pharaoh Tutankhamen. On June 15 visitors to the Museum of Idaho will have their chance to find out why story of the boy king continues to fascinate more than 3,000 years after his death.

"King Tut: Treasures of the Tomb" will remain in Idaho Falls through Nov. 24. Unlike the exhibition that came to the Smithsonian in 1977, this exhibit features none of the actual priceless artifacts from the tomb. But the artisans of the Pharaonic Village in Giza, Egypt, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, have devoted exquisite care in the reproduction of the legendary treasures from the richest archaeological find of all time.

With an expansive scope of over 131 artifact replicas, this showcase of King Tut’s treasures is larger and more complete than any previous exhibition of the originals (which only included approximately 55 artifacts). Displayed in open glass cases, the exhibition includes replicas of the pharaoh’s sacred
and personal possessions along with associated artifacts from the period surrounding Tutankhamen’s reign.

“The objects are all cast to look like the real thing . . . with the flaws and all,” said Marty Martin, curator from The Origins Museum Institute, where the exhibit originally was put together. “People can really experience them [the pieces] and they can actually breathe and live within the exhibit. While the experience of seeing the original artifacts is unsurpassable, there are enormous benefits to viewing these reproductions. The sheer number of replicas far exceeds the number of original objects which were allowed to leave the Egyptian Museum for view abroad.”

While earlier exhibitions have displayed the artifacts according to how they were removed from the tomb, this exhibit groups the artifacts into five different categories, each according to a different aspect of the pharaoh’s life: an Introductory Hall, the Hall of the Discovery, the Private Pharaoh, the Public Pharaoh, and the Sacred Burial.

The exhibit also features an authentic 18th Dynasty sandstone stela, bearing a superb relief of Akhenaten, and three genuine 26th Dynasty funerary necklaces.
For more information about the exhibit and the Museum of Idaho, visit this link: http://www.museumofidaho.org/

And for those of you who can't hear the name King Tut without thinking of the Steve Martin novelty hit of 1977, here it is, albeit a bluegrass version from 2010.

Venture One lands Social Security Administration office job

It has taken a great deal of work, but Shane Murphy of Venture One Properties said he is looking forward to having the Social Security Administration as a long-term tenant in his building in the 2100 block of Channing Way.

Before they were awarded the bid, Venture One worked for three years with the General Services Administration. The remodel will involve 6,100 square feet in the building that also houses the UPS Store and Batteries Plus. The space will be refitted to accommodate about 60 people.

For all the red tape, the upside is 10-year fixed lease with a five-year extension option. Murphy said he expects construction to begin in the fall and to have people moved in by April 2013.

International Isotopes clears major hurdle for New Mexico project

Steve Laflin, President of International Isotopes

International Isotopes Inc. of Idaho Falls has gotten approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the $125 million plant it is planning to build in New Mexico to handle depleted uranium and fluorine extraction.

The commission has published the final safety evaluation report, online and in the Federal Register. Approval represents a major milestone in the licensing process for the plant, near Hobbs, N.M., said Steve Laflin, the company's president and CEO. Only the final environmental impact statement remains to be completed before the company receives its combined 40-year construction and operating licenses. This is expected to be around September.

The company is taking job applications and proposals, which can be sent to IIFP@intisoid.com.

International Isotopes submitted its license application in December 2009. The report documents the commission's evaluation of safety and what could go wrong for workers and the public under both normal operations and accident conditions. The NRC also considered the management organization, administrative programs and financial qualifications provided by the company to ensure safe design and operation of the facility.

Last year the company applied for a $97 million loan from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Renewable-Energy Technology Development program, which evaluates whether a technology might reduce greenhouse gas emissions. "Our patented fluorine extraction process uses seven times less energy than conventional industrial processes for making hydrofluoric acid," Laflin told blogger Dan Yurman of Idaho Samizdat: Nuke Notes. "This means we can show reductions of six million pounds of carbon dioxide a year over the life of the plant"