Fireball lawsuit claims mini bottles sold in markets, gas stations contain no whisky

CHICAGO -- A civil lawsuit filed in federal court alleges Fireball mini bottles do not actually contain any whisky as the label says.

The label on Fireball sold at liquor stores says "Whisky with natural cinnamon flavor." The subject of the class action lawsuit, which was filed in Illinois, is the mini bottles sold at gas stations and markets.

"What consumers were purchasing at non-liquor stores is not whisky at all" even though the labels on the mini bottles are almost identical, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit says labels on the Fireball mini bottles, which can be purchased for $0.99, say they contain "Natural Whisky Flavors & Other Flavors," but in reality they don't.

The labels on the mini bottles are nearly indistinguishable from liquor store Fireball labels except they say "Fireball Cinnamon" with no mention of whisky because it's a malt beverage with whisky flavor.

The lawsuit accuses the company of intentionally misleading customers into believing they are buying small bottles of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky, and said the plaintiff paid more than she should have on a product she thought contained actual whiskey.

"Defendant knew the product attributes that potential customers like Plaintiff were seeking and developed its marketing and labeling to directly meet their needs and desires, which was the consumption of distilled spirits instead of a malt beverage," the lawsuit says.

CNN contributed to this report