April 12th,
2008
Posted by
Doug
under Political Controversies, Vodka
OK, I swore I wasn’t going to touch this in this forum, but I awoke this morning to something that made me laugh out loud. First, bear with me for the background.
For those of you who managed to miss this until you had the misfortune of reading this post, Absolut Vodka just discovered the perils of running ads in one country that insult a huge portion of their customer base in another country, while them thar intarnets are up and running.
Here is the advertisement that Absolut ran in Mexico:
For the record, I think Absolut is pretty crummy Vodka. The first time I had an inkling I was a cocktailian in the making was when I was about 28, and sitting in an airport hotel bar with my brothers and father. I ordered a Stoli Martini. When it arrived, I took a sip and sent it back, telling the waiter it tasted like Absolut. His eyes got wide and said it was. I was polite enough not to go smack the bartender and demand to know why he chose to sub one brand for another that had been specified…
Anyway, a lot of Americans got incensed by this little piece of marketing genius by Absolut, and many are threatening the inevitable boycott. I, for one, think Absolut can run whatever ads it wants. I even chuckled a little when I first saw the ad, which is more than I can say for most of Absolut’s mediocre ad campaign of the last ten years. And I chuckled a lot when I saw Absolut and its advertising firm, when the controversy started bubbling up, ignore the firs rule of finding yourself in a hole: Stop Digging! Anytime anyone, whether politician, public figure, or commercial enterprise, has to issue multiple apologies, including apologies for the previous apologies, then you know they have committed cardinal sin number one: Don’t piss off a bunch of people who have the power to affect your cash flow. Why did this entertain me? Because I love watching people get humbled. So do you.
I will say one serious thing. I do hope that ad companies take the right lesson from this. Don’t run ad campaigns that depend on nationalist sentiments at the expense of other nationalities. The same ad, run in the context of Tibet/China, or Israel/Jordan, would likely result in some measure of bloodshed.
But what made me laugh out loud? This, my friends, from yesterday morning (h/t: Instapundit): SKYY Vodka Proudly Supports Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Someone at SKYY Vodka has a seriously mean sense of humor. I think I’ll pick up a bottle this weekend.
UPDATE: An Instalanche! Thanks Glen! I feel like a real blogger now!
Folks, I hope you look around beyond this little post. We mostly talk drinks around here, like drinks that take a month to make, or what is the best lime juice to use in cocktails. And if you haven’t read much about the new cocktail renaissance, be sure to check out the big boys in cocktail blogging that you’ll find over in my blogroll.
Cheers!
April 12th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Have tried for a while to get into the blog comments on the Absolut site. Not working; there are over 2,300 comments and I suspect it’s crashed. What I wanted to tell them is I have (had, rather) 3 bottles of Absolut of various flavors in my freezer and they are down the drain. I don’t drink Vodka all that often but when I do I tend to buy economically, much as I love Grey Goose, Chopin, etc. Absolut is always the cheapest of the decent brands. I will now concentrate my vodka purchases on Skyy, just because. I’ve bought it before and it’s just fine. I had seen their new press release and LOL’d. These are smart and savvy folks.
Absolut, I hope you go down the drain in a corporate way. (I just read some French outfit had bid for them; heh, too bad eh?)
Peg C.(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Good post… however, I suggest a visit to http://www.sitepoint.com/print/colour-checklists-web-design and read the General Guidelines, in particular. White text on a dark background (especially when viewed on an LCD screen) is difficult to discern.
Just a suggestion.
Gun Trash(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
“Absolut: The Vodka for people who insist on drinking Tequila! With a taste to ensure generations of continued Tequila preference!”
“Absolut: Ensuring that Koreans continue making Soju martini’s!” (Which you should try if you haven’t.)
This latest gaffe won’t put Absolut out of business, unless their financial outlook is seriously on margin, but it might get them pushed out of the premium vodka market in the US. The advertising agency responsible should be out of business and sued if possible. Free speech is one thing, gross incompetence is another.
Patrick S Lasswell(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Absolut was trying to tap into the anti-American fervour that is prevalent in Mexico City. That’s why they hired the Mexico City advertising group to do the ad. A lot of Euros seem to be getting into the conversation, to express their astonishment that Americans object to losing a large section of national territory–even in jest!
Should Americans display a sense of humour about loss of territory, it will probably be exercised at the expense of Europeans, who are steadily losing their sovereignty to bureaucrats and immigrants of a certain religious fanatical persuasion.
Al Fin(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 2:55 pm
I cannot satisfactorily express my rage at Absolut in any other manner than be becoming a permanent little gamma particle, telling every American I know about their worldview whenever the topic of alcoholic beverages comes up. If I drank vodka, I’d boycott them, but this is the best I can do.
If the swing around and become a pioneering supporter of strict border control, I will rethink my approach.
Jonathan(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Gun Trash: I think you may need a better monitor. I used to have trouble seeing light text on a dark background. Then, I got a new LCD monitor. Now, it is all crystal clear.
Dave in St. Louis(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
The best part of the Skyy press release IMO is the “Don’t get me started on the Gadsden Purchase”; up until that part, I was on the bubble of is it funny or just opportunist and that pushed it clearly over to funny.
NDC(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Patrick S Lasswell Says:
April 12th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
“Absolut: The Vodka for people who insist on drinking Tequila! With a taste to ensure generations of continued Tequila preference!”
“Absolut: Ensuring that Koreans continue making Soju martini’s!” (Which you should try if you haven’t.)
———————
I discovered Absolut when I was in college and found it worlds above and beyond the stuff friends would drink that came out of plastic bottles, but at the end of college discovered I had a taste for tequila and never really turned back- at one time I had over 30 brands of premiums with a couple of varieties of most- anything with Cuervo on the label qualifies as dreck, not premium- but that has pared back as some of my most favorites went out of business and couldn’t be replaced (ah, Porfidio, I miss you). Salt the rim of a glass, drop in a cube or three, pour in tequila and squeeze fresh lime to taste, then sip. Anyone doing shots of $60+ tequilas will have mescal substituted for their next shot.
Oh, and having spent quite a bit of time in Korea, I drink a lot of soju and sho-chu from Japan (pick your favorite romanization if you don’t like that one), but Iichiko is one of my favorites that I can get outside of Japan. My most favorite isn’t even sold outside of the town where it is made, Hitoyoshi. If you don’t speak Japanese, get a translator and find one of the many shou chu factories, the tasting rooms at the end of the tour can be incredible.
The only vodkas I have had around for quite a while are what friends bring me or Tito’s, but I never made any connection between Absolut and tequila before. Assuming that it wasn’t intended as an insult, which if you are comparing Absolut to Cuervo it would come across as, would you care to go further with where your statement is coming from? Ah, and do you have a favorite brand of soju that you would care to share?
QQ Boss(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Well, the Euro-Weenies really showed their colours this time.
I imagine they are in a huff about how dare those Americans be offended by us supporting a racist group that wants to sunder their country (in case you are wondering, it is la Raza)
Well, I suppose they will have to give up alcohol when their countries come under Sharia Law anyway so Absolut has to find new markets soon
GW Crawford(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
QQ Boss,
Getting Soju in Oregon is a bit of a task. It hasn’t hit yet and so it is only available in one store in the Portland area. That store sells quite a bit of it to local Koreans, but there is only one brand. A couple years ago I brought home a good bit from a trip, but that was just what I could find at the exchange, not selected for premium quality.
Still, it makes for wonderful martini’s with giant volume.
Patrick S Lasswell(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Thanks to all who’ve commented. I appreciate the participation in my sleepy little blog.
NCD, the Gadsden purchase line was also what really made me lose it.
But beyond the laughter, I was amazed at the sheer ballsy brilliance of SKYY being willing to jump on Absolut and kick them while they are down. The ability to go for the jugular like they did is sorely missing in much of American discourse today. And they really are going for the jugular, too. This was a funny press release, but it is probably going to be the single most profitable press release in history. There is a lot of angry money out there, looking for a place to go. SKYY just moved at the right time. A lot of people who otherwise would have ignored SKYY will at least give it a try.
As I said, I won’t be boycotting Absolut because I don’t drink it to begin with. And if Cointreau stepped on their, um, tongues like this, I’d probably still buy it. I needs me my Cointreau!
Doug(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
Patrick,
What is a Soju Martini? We’s always looking for new stuff to try in this corner of the greater blogosphere.
Doug(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
QQBoss,
Absolut is not in the Tequila business. They make Absolut, Level, and Fris Vodkas, Plymouth Gin, and Cruzan Rum. They are owned by the French makers of Pernod.
I think Patrick’s point was more along the line of laughing at a company taking the step of trying to capture a little more market share in a country that is not known for its Vodka consumption, at the risk of alienating a large portion (up to 62% in an LA Times Poll this morning) of one of your largest markets.
Stupidity transcends political affiliations. That is my central point!
Oh, and $60 Tequila is for sipping; I could not agree more.
Doug(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Doug,
Soju is a Korean spirit. In the dim mists of time it was probably fortified or distilled rice wine, but in 1958 the Korean government mandated that all Soju be composed of neutral spirits and applied other purity standards. Today Soju comes in 40-70 proof and tastes a lot like a good vodka. There are some super-premium Soju’s in Korea, but I am uncertain how available they are in the US.
http://www.jinrousa.com/
http://www.internetwines.com/rws34127.html
The critical advantage of 40 proof Soju martini’s is that you can either have a lot more of them, or a lot larger ones. In California and New York, Jinro was able to get 40 proof Soju classified as wine, so lower standards of liquor licenses are available for them. California and New York businesses with only a beer and wine license can sell Soju martini’s and other drinks.
Patrick S Lasswell(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Doug,
Given Patrick’s follow on comment about Soju, I don’t think your clarification is accurate, but since he had the chance to clarify for himself and completely avoid it I am going to interpret it as intended to slam people who like tequilas (at least bad ones). No worries, if everyone only liked the same thing, the world would be a pretty boring place.
That said, I completely agree that running that ad in Mexico, where they probably could gain 5 figures worth of consumers was idiotic given that they will probably lose 6+ figures worth of consumers here in the USA. If I need a vodka fix outside of my home, I will definitely be going for Skyy. I am only amazed that more people didn’t have photoshop fun with the ad. I saw a few, but not nearly as many as I anticipated.
Patrick, I don’t know where in Oregon you are, but if you are close (or passing through) the Seattle area, take the bypass around to the Redmond area. Quite a large Korean and Japanese population out that way with full sized grocery stores (better then what I found in the Japan-town area) with some good selections outside of basic Jinro Chamisul. Jinro is made from sweet potatoes and has saccharin added, so I usually only drink it mixed with other things like fruit juices so the sweetness doesn’t rasp on me (or doing shots of it over galbi with friends). Iichiko is pretty easy to get at well stocked liquor stores in Texas, so I would tend to believe you should be able to get it in Oregon at least as a special order. It is made from barley and has no sweeteners added, so pour it over ice (unless you like to keep your liquors in the freezer) and twist in a bit of lemon for a wonderfully smooth and simple drink (about as close to a vodka martini as I get).
QQ Boss(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 8:17 pm
QQ Boss,
Doug was right. I apologize for not correcting you earlier. I enjoy fine tequila and have for years. Years of military experience has kept me from exploring too many tequila’s.
When you go out with a group of military people for an evening’s enjoyment a strange phenomena occurs. A reasonable and responsible person will ask the bartender for a fine tequila. Someone in the group will hear this and for some reason interpret this as an accusation against their genderhood and capacity for alcohol; a stain upon their honor that can only be washed clean with gallons of binge drinking. Since I am a largish person and can function fairly well with a sampling of alcohol, I ended up far too often getting the idiot with the hearing impairment back to the ship.
My comment was intended to indicate that the bulk of radical Mexican nationalists have more interest in their indigenous spirit than any Swedish import. I apologize for any and all misunderstandings.
With regard to Soju, the number of Koreans who are ardent radical Mexican nationalist is also quite small. A large number of shopkeepers and liquor store owners are Koreans, and they have a better drink than Absolut. The amount of fondness Korean liquor store owners have for radical Mexican nationalists is small, and I suspect their future orders of Absolut might well be smaller.
Patrick S Lasswell(Quote) (Reply)
April 12th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Patrick,
In my experience, your experience with Tequila and Military Personnel is accurate. But in my experience, said experience applies in exactly congruent fashion with Non-Military Personnel!
Tequila is the hidden reef or Bermuda Triangle of boozes: Get too near, and you’ll need a salvage ship!
A comedian whose name I cannot remember does a great bit on Tequila. To wit,
Doug(Quote) (Reply)
April 13th, 2008 at 1:28 am
This is a GREAT opportunity. Just think of it. ABSOLUT Britian can show the old Empire map…with Union Jacks! should be popular in New Delhi! ABSOLUT Japan can include Manchuria and Korea…I’m thinking billboards in Seoul. ABSOLUT Spain is, naturally, ALL of old New Spain (We’ll save Brazil for ABSOLUT Portugal). But the real star would be ABSOLUT Sweden, incorporating the old Kingdom, (Norway and Denmark). Should be REAL popular in Oslo! Feel the love.
Craig Zimmerman(Quote) (Reply)
April 13th, 2008 at 7:34 am
Arriving here from the happy environs of Instapundit, we are displeased at the impertinence of the author of this very modest place. The person misconstrues our kind condescension in choosing to tarry here as an invitation to familiarity. What could possibly be more cringeffective than such “incursions insinuantes?
If we were dealing with a person who was sensitive to the appropriate tone and the social realities, we might deign a glance of appraisal – might advise on the less than perfectly harmonious interplay of colors, the faulty juxtapositions of narrative mood. After all, one of the obligations placed upon our selves is the cultural improvement of our lessers. But one is disinclined to cast pearls before upstarts. No, indeed, we withdraw.
There are places where the elevated patronage of vaunted habitues of Instapundit is sufficiently recognized and observed. At such a place you may attend me.
Neil Ferguson(Quote) (Reply)
April 14th, 2008 at 5:26 am
Re: price points, I take it anyone who thinks Absolut is good value for money hasn’t had Ketel One (out for years, noticeably better, and always a couple bucks cheapers) or Tito’s (new, but under $20 even in midtown Manhattan and IMAO better than Grey Goose).
Aaron Davies(Quote) (Reply)
April 15th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
May 13th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
May 15th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
December 1st, 2008 at 4:53 pm
I have to laugh! We’re currently living in Oklahoma and it doesn’t appear that an Abolut Mexico wants the state…hmmmm!!!
Lora(Quote) (Reply)
July 15th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Absolut is the bomb!
ben denverson(Quote) (Reply)
November 16th, 2011 at 4:42 am