The nation's leading maker of alcoholic energy drinks wants to up the ante with a new high-alcohol product called Sparks Red, but attorneys general from 25 states are calling on brewer MillerCoors to drop the drink, the Associated Press reported Sept. 17.

Sparks Red would contain up to 8 percent alcohol, the AGs said, higher than the original Sparks and far more than contained in beers like Miller High Life and Coors, which have about 5 percent alcohol by volume.

"MillerCoors' decision to introduce Sparks Red defies increasing undeniable evidence from medical and public health professionals about the dangers of mixing alcohol with stimulants found in energy drinks," according to a letter from the AGs group. Critics also charge that the drinks appeal directly to teens, who are major consumers of energy drinks like Red Bull.

The state officials said that if MillerCoors doesn't abandon Sparks Red they would consider other action, such as a lawsuit, to keep the product off store shelves.

A spokesperson for MillerCoors said that the company plans to release Sparks Red on Oct. 1, as originally scheduled. Spokesperson Julian Green said the product had been approved by the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). "We will continue to work with the TTB to insure that marketing, labeling and formulation continues to meet all guidelines," Green said.

The watchdog Center for Science in the Public Interest last week sued MillerCoors in an attempt to get Sparks off the market, and pressure from advocacy groups and law-enforcement officials earlier led Anheuser-Busch to remove stimulants from its Tilt and Bud Extra products.