Blog Entries in Category: General Blogs

Reaching New Heights

Category: General Blogs  |  Tags: lifestyle brands, branding, energy, Red Bull

While I was researching and writing this month’s cover story on energy drinks, it occurred to me that there are few other consumer products that have been as creative, even ingenious, in their use of marketing.

Energy drinks didn’t get to be where they are today—one of the fastest growing, most vibrant beverage categories—just by fulfilling a need state, though that has certainly been a very important key to their success. After all, many consumers today, in all types of demographic groups, have come to rely on their daily energy drink for that extra bit of mental alertness and energy each day. To many of them, a cup of coffee is sort of their grandfather’s drink.

But a big part of the reason they feel that way is because of the category’s superb marketing. Energy drink companies have created excitement around their products that is unmatched by other beverages, and most other consumer products. Sure, other beverage companies like Coke and Pepsi are known as marketing powerhouses. There are few companies that can compete with them. But some of the smaller energy drink companies have taken marketing to a whole new stratosphere—literally.

For example, you must have been asleep under a rock this past October if you didn’t at least see some mention of the Red Bull Stratos project. Felix Baumgartner, sponsored by Red Bull, broke the world record for the highest and fastest jump in history—an incredible 24 miles. First, he rode in a space capsule attached to a 850,000 cubic meter helium balloon to a record-breaking altitude of 36,576 meters (120,000 feet). On his way down he broke the sound barrier at speeds near 1,110 km/h (If you haven’t seen the footage, it’s available on YouTube.) Red Bull financed the project and its logo was plainly visible for all to see on uniforms and the space capsule itself.

What a marketing coup for Red Bull! The company always has made this type of breathtaking, daredevil marketing a central part of its brand identity and that has been part of its genius—and its success. And now, thanks to Baumgartner’s jump, it is part of history as well.

Yes, even Coke and Pepsi can probably learn a thing or two about marketing from some of the energy drink companies. It’s one beverage category that continues to push new boundaries in CPG marketing.

Sandy’s Big Miss

Category: General Blogs  |  Tags: water, bottled water

Unless you’ve been hibernating under your favorite rock, you’ll know the New York/New Jersey area—where our entire edit and art team resides—was hit pretty hard by Hurricane Sandy. I count myself among the extremely lucky. While many in my immediate neighborhood experienced catastrophic flooding and lost power for nearly two weeks, my home suffered little more than a 36-hour blackout (I was stranded in Chicago, as all New York-area airports were closed, so I ended up missing the whole thing). I was struck by the image of relief volunteers all over town lending a helping hand to those who needed it most. But you want to know what was almost as striking? The pallet loads of bottled water being distributed to those without potable running water. My parents and grandmother, who live about an hour away from me near the Jersey Shore, informed me they were living on—not to mention bathing in—bottled water for a good 11 or 12 days after the media-dubbed “Superstorm.”  

Why do I bring this up? Think about it. If the anti-bottled-water movement got its ultimate wish, the relief effort would be much more challenging, if not virtually impossible. The Red Cross and local volunteers may not have been able to do much for the power and heat situation, but they had the tools to tackle the water issue pretty quickly, with millions of bottles at the ready from the industry’s top producers. Now imagine a world without bottled water and the impact it would have on the victims of the storm. I’d rather not think about.

Look, I know what some people are thinking. Here’s a shameless PR statement from just another shill for the industry. But guess what. I’m a passionate environmentalist. The fact that we had such a storm is directly related to climate change, which many, for the sake of blind ideological purity, continue to deny. In my mind climate change, global warming, whatever you want to call it, is an undisputable fact. When you try to challenge science with spin, science will always win.

But my argument for bottled water has been one of convenience and, as Sandy has proved, sometimes of necessity. I have a Brita filter at home. I love my Brita filter. But when I’m not home I really don’t want to carry a thermos—the contents of which would be depleted pretty quickly, leaving me to find an acceptable water source with which to refill it. Anyone who’s ever used an airport water fountain or public restroom sink knows that’s not an easy thing to do. That’s when I’m buying bottled water. A lot of it.

I strongly believe that we need to reduce the amount of petroleum-based material in our bottles. I long for the day—hopefully just a few years down the road—when plant-based packaging becomes a mainstream, commercially viable option. But in the interim, bottled water companies have been among the first to innovate with lightweighting. More can be done, but it should tide us all over until bio-alternatives are the norm.

So when a storm, earthquake, mudslide, tornado or any natural or man-made disaster strikes, those advocating against bottled water must ask themselves this: What good is your Brita, now?

Crafting a Positive Message

Category: General Blogs  |  Tags: beer, brewing, craft beer

I’ve found myself spreading the “craft beer word” quite a bit recently. Not really on purpose. It’s just that when you become familiar with the craft beer movement, it can become hard not to evangelize a little about it. After all, there are few stories in the beverage world these days that are as exciting as the meteoric rise we are seeing with craft.  And, it’s hard to not educate others about that and the fact that a fundamental shift is currently taking place in how Americans consume beer.

That shift, as you might expect, is still underreported when it comes to the mainstream press. Whether it’s on TV or in the newspapers, beer consumption can still automatically rack up its share of negative press coverage. Instead, few may be aware of what an economic powerhouse the craft movement has been for the U.S. Few probably know that as of June this year the U.S. recorded its highest number of breweries (2,126) in 125 years (in 1890, it had 2,011).

As a result, some still tend to look at the glass half empty when they hear beer. For example, I’ve recently found myself trying to convince some of my neighbors here in the Queens, N.Y. town where I live that a soon-to-open gastropub will actually be a big plus for our downtown shopping area. The pub says it will offer a wide selection of craft beer, whiskey, scotch and delicious foods to go with them. Sounds like a classy joint to me. Our downtown could use just the type of consumers who buy craft beer. That demographic tends to be young and educated and has money to spend, something our main shopping drag, already with its share of empty storefronts, could only benefit from. Unfortunately, some of my neighbors have immediately jumped to an opposite conclusion. They only see drunken patrons stumbling out onto the sidewalk, disturbing the peace.

Nevertheless, I continue to do my share to talk up the craft movement wherever I can. This Thanksgiving, I realized I had some unopened craft beer samples lying around my apartment (yes, one of the perks of being an editor of Beverage World is that we get our share of samples!). Suddenly it occurred to me that several of the people coming to Thanksgiving this year I knew to be beer lovers. Maybe a tasting was in order? It would kill two birds with one stone. After all, my Thanksgivings have several times in recent years taken a turn towards the Dark Side thanks to some bitter political divides. What better way to gird against the possibility of any more drama than by a pleasant beer tasting?

Turns out, my instincts were right on target. The beer tasting was a huge hit and even served to educate those around the table about the different varieties of craft beer. I think it opened some of the beer lovers’ eyes to the wider world that craft affords us all. And I’m happy to report, this exercise in beer discovery was just the thing to unite an otherwise politically polarized group soon after the bitterness of the recent election. Yes, craft beer at the Kaplan Family Thanksgiving was a uniter, not a divider. You might want to give it a try at your celebratory gatherings this month. Happy Holidays!

’Tis the Season

Category: General Blogs  |  Tags: beer, brewing, beverage, holiday, seasonal

Christmas seems to come earlier and earlier each year. Retail windows decorated in snowy wonderlands, Christmas tunes filling department stores and seasonal beverages appearing on restaurant and bar menus.
I always know the official Christmas season has begun when Starbucks switches over from its iconic white cups with green emblem to its red holiday cups; this year the coffee house chose snowmen, carolers and a fox in wintery scenes to welcome the holiday season.

I’m not the only one who looks forward to this changeover. A quick Google search reveals there is a website dedicated to counting down the days until the red cups return and millions of search results return for the words “Starbucks holiday cups.”

But the seasonal return of these fun and festive cups also seemed to come a bit earlier this year. It was early November when I walked into a Starbucks outside of the South Kensington tube station in London craving a Pumpkin Spice Latte only to find a menu of Christmas-themed coffees—Eggnog Latte, Gingerbread Latte, Toffee Nut Latte and Praline Mocha.

“Are you making Pumpkin Spice Lattes still?” I asked with my fingers crossed that they could still make the fall drink.

“No,” the barista replied. “I’m sorry.” So, I opted for the Praline Mocha, new for this Christmas. It’s warm bittersweet chocolate infused with the flavor of hazelnut combined with espresso and steamed milk topped with whipped cream and a drizzle of mocha sauce.

Even though I was disappointed that fall was over and winter had begun—at Starbucks, anyway—I found myself switching gears and getting into the holiday spirit, making a mental Christmas list, getting excited about upcoming holiday parties and enjoying my tall Praline Mocha, no whip.

On the alcohol side, breweries continue their seasonal offerings moving into darker beers, bourbon barrel aged ales, beers with higher alcohol. Anheuser-Busch Winter’s Bourbon Cask Ale, Freemont Brewing’s Bourbon Barrel Abominable and Widmer Brothers Brrr Seasonal Ale are just among a few of the many beers crafted to warm us up during the winter months.

At a recent Bacardi holiday event, the brand showcased how to spice up the holiday season with drinks other than traditional eggnog. Take the Coquito for example. A traditional holiday drink of Puerto Rico, the Coquito is made with half a bottle of Bacardi Superior, one can of evaporated milk, one can of condensed milk, two cans of cream of coconut and two teaspoons of cinnamon. Slowly blend the evaporated milk, condensed milk and the cream and coconut. Then add the cinnamon and slowly add Bacardi Superior until everything is incorporated.

Brand ambassador David Cid took us through a selection of five other cocktails at NY’s Abe & Arthur’s—The Bacardi Cocktail, The Selleck, Airmail, Bacardi Holiday Punch and La Noche. Bacardi Holiday Punch, for instance, consists of 750 ml of Bacardi Superior or Bacardi Gold rum, 2 liters of ginger ale chilled, 8 ounces of orange juice, one ounce of lime juice and one and one-half ounce of lemon juice.

Now that the holidays have officially arrived, take your drink menus to the next level and introduce your guests to some new flavors. Happy holidays.

The Teacher Has Become the Student

Category: General Blogs  |  Tags: beer, brewing, craft beer, hops, beverage, alcohol, brew

My wife and I just went on what was quite possibly the best brewery tour we'd ever been on (and believe me, we've been on a lot of them). It was at London's Meantime Brewing Company, a 13-year-old craft operation that takes its name from the fact that it's situated in the chronological capital of the world, Greenwich.

When tour leader Alex (a quite dynamic guide) learned we were from the States he couldn't stop gushing about the U.S. craft beer scene and how the U.K. is about 15 years behind the American movement. Wait a minute. BEHIND? A great deal of American craft brewers took a cue from classic styles from Britain (as well as, of course, Belgium, Germany and the Czech Republic) when developing their own products. Beer travelers from the U.S. trek across the pond to drink cask-conditioned Real Ale. And a lot of the U.S. craft brewers offer cask versions of their own products, again a nod to the classic British tradition.

But now there are breweries like Meantime whose offerings are heavily influenced by the styles popularized by American craft brewers—those same styles whose ancestors were European and tweaked and reinvented over time. American pale ale is of course a descendant of English pale ale. The same goes, of course for American IPAs, which evolved from British India Pale Ales, which were more aggressively hopped and had a higher ABV to preserve them for the 18,000-mile pre-canal-era voyage from England to thirsty colonial troops in India.

The walls of Meantime's tasting room were filled with bottles from around the world with a disproportionately large section devoted to U.S. craft brews. Others visiting the brewery were eager to tell us how much they loved beers from the likes Brooklyn Brewery or Stone.

And it's not just the U.K. The brewing boomerang has flown back to Belgium as well, with U.S.-influenced styles like Belgian IPA emerging.

It's hard to believe that not too long ago Europeans considered American beers a total joke. But who's laughing now?