• Los Angeles Times , Friday, August 15, 2008 10:15 AM

Until recently, ShotPak's home page on the Internet showed a photo of just the middle of an attractive young woman. There was no head and not much of her legs. But there was a tight, bare belly clad in low-slung blue jeans with a 50-milliliter (1.7-ounce) "Purple Hooter" pouch wedged into her front pocket. The makers call it a "party in a pouch." Critics say it's more like an alcoholic candy bar.

"Who are they appealing to? This isn't the kind of thing adults drink," says Dr. Michael Brody of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Adults of 25 to 40 years old are the prime targets, according to R. Charles Murray, CEO of Beverage Pouch Group, which owns the ShotPak brand. The company will sell about $500,000 of the drinks this year, he says, and is marketing a convenient drink "for a social setting" such as tailgate parties at sporting events, beaches or while boating -- situations where people don't want to cart glass around.

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