As we predicted, Peter Vallone Jr. is no fan of All City NRG and he’s back on the stump saying so. The Queens Councilmember believes the ripped off, graffiti themed packaging on the energy drink promotes vandalism, and not one to miss an opportunity to hate on graffiti, Vallone held a press conference yesterday to attack the drink and its manufacturer Arizona.

“How low can a company go in search of profits? What’s next, are they going to have an energy drink called Car Jack?”

“If this drink was called ‘pickpocket pickup,’ and had pictures of criminals lifting wallets, wouldn’t people be offended?”

Vallone held the press conference outside a Queens store, the one and only, that has pulled the drink from shelves and hopes others follow suit, saying, “Don’t stock Arizona, don’t buy Arizona. This company is despicable and it doesn’t deserve to make a profit by glorying crime.” Unfortunately for Vallone, this attack will probably help boost those profits.

Screen capture from NY1.

Beyond the bland commercial graffiti covering Arizona’s All City NRG drink, there was something bothering us with the logo, namely that it appears to read ‘Alt City’. The lowercase ‘L’ has an unnecessary loop on top that doesn’t look right and we aren’t just seeing things. You Thought We Wouldn’t Notice, the website that exposes companies who rip off artists, points out that someone did a hasty job ripping off being inspired by the ‘Dutch Masters’ logo (an Amsterdam hip hop group from the mid nineties, not the blunt wraps). The logo was published in a 2002 collection of contemporary logo designs called Los Logos, that you too can pilfer for designs to sell to beverage companies.

Also, here is further evidence that graffiti and energy drinks don’t mix well at all. Remember kids, do your fill-in before your final outline.

Spotted on the streets of Bushwick: All City NRG, a graffiti-themed iced tea energy drink being hawked from a predictably tagged up promotional van. The new drink from AriZona comes in a ‘limited edition’ aluminum can adorned in typical mainstream graffiti fashion with the work of FACT ONE. Putting aside the lack of relevancy between graffiti and iced tea, associating your caffeine boosted drink with the aging, unpredictable, oft-flooded, rat infested, piss smelling subway system of New York City seems a little silly (MTA, we still love you!). How long before Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr. denounces the drink for encouraging NYC youth to go out and bomb the city? Not long.

Continue reading: Arizona Goes ‘All City,’ Bombs Hard