In a sharp swig of courtroom clarity, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has popped the cork on the sale and distribution of “Old Mist” coffee rum, finding its uncanny resemblance to the legendary “Old Monk” brand too close for consumer comfort.
The interim order, delivered by Justice Ajay Mohan Goel, came as a response to a trademark infringement suit filed by Mohan Meakin Ltd., the maker of Old Monk, who claimed that Eston Roman Brewery & Distillery Pvt. Ltd.—a company barely a year old—was trying to surf on its long-aged brand equity with a lookalike label and a suspiciously similar name.
The plaintiff pointed out that “Old Monk Coffee” is a registered trademark, secured in June 2022 and valid until 2031. So when bottles of “Old Mist” began appearing in Goa stores in mid-2025, eyebrows were raised—and so was legal action.
The Court, after inspecting samples from both parties, didn’t mince words. The resemblance, it noted, was more than just cosmetic—it struck at the heart of the brand identity and had the potential to deceive customers, possibly tricking them into thinking they were sipping the original, time-honoured Old Monk instead of a fledgling imposter.
“Prima facie it appears there is an infringement,” the judge stated, citing the product’s mimicry of the trademark and packaging of Old Monk’s coffee-infused variant. The Court said it could not allow a product to ride piggyback on a legacy brand and warned that continued sale of “Old Mist” could blur the lines for buyers and unfairly profit the newer label.
With the balance of convenience tipping in favour of Old Monk, the Court issued a restraining order on the defendant and its associates, forbidding them from selling or distributing the contentious brew until further notice.
In short: the mist has lifted, and so has the veil over brand mimicry in the liquor aisle.
