Associated Press--That Blue Moon Belgian White beer you're looking forward to enjoying after work was brewed in either Colorado or Tennessee, not Belgium, and if you think Belgium's renowned brewers are happy about that, you're wrong.

The Confederation of Belgian Breweries sued the giant Colorado-based Coors Brewing Co.last week to get it to stop calling its beer Belgian.

"There are ways to do a Belgian-style beer without misleading the public," said Bart Lazar, the lawyer for the Confederation of Belgian Breweries, who filed the lawsuit in federal court in Chicago.

Lazar said complaints to Coors and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms eventually caused the company to put the words "Belgian Style" on the bottles, but that the words are in small type and obscured by the six-pack's carton.

The main label says "Blue Moon Belgian White," while the smaller label reads: "A Belgian-style wheat ale that is brewed with wheat, oats and barley malt; exotically spiced with coriander and orange peel for a creamy taste and refreshing finish."

At press-time, Coors had not yet seen the lawsuit and could not comment on it, said company spokeswoman Lori Varsames. But she pointed out that both labels refer to "Blue Moon Brewing Company, USA" and that the bottles also note the beer is brewed in Denver and Memphis, Tenn.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms had reviewed and approved the current labels, Varsames added.

The Belgian brewers are seeking to stop Coors from marketing the beer as Belgian, to make it pay for "corrective advertising" and to make it pay punitive damages.

Radio advertisements for Belgian White refer to Belgian beers as among the world's best. One refers to Blue Moon Belgian White as being "brewed in the true Belgian tradition." Another says "There are four Belgian universities dedicated to brewing excellence and inspiring people to brew beer like Blue Moon Belgian White."

Neither advertisement mentions that the beer is brewed in Memphis, Tenn., and Denver.

Belgian beers are considered to be among the world's finest. They are imported in small quantities and often cost more per bottle than a six-pack of Blue Moon.

Beer is taken very seriously in Belgium, where more than 100 brewers serve a population of about 10 million and glassware is specially designed to best suit the aroma and taste of various kinds of beers. "If the public associates Belgian beer with an inauthentic product, it could have a substantial effect on the growth of the market," Lazar said.