Spirits brands have always been on the cutting edge of emerging event technology, employing augmented and virtual reality long before the pandemic forced all brands to go totally virtual. So it makes sense that they’ve been able to keep the creative juices (and wine) flowing, taking their digital experiences to the next level.
Here are some key takeaways from recent virtual activations by brands including The Macallan, PATRÓN and Moët Hennessy.
1. Mimic an interactive in-person activation.
To promote the launch of its latest collection with British pop artist Sir Peter Blake, The Macallan recently unveiled the Anecdotes of Ages Virtual Art Exhibit, where visitors can explore Blake’s studio and learn about his work along with the inspiration behind the collection’s original label artwork. Each bottle features an original Sir Peter Blake collage related to The Macallan’s history and estate. One of the original hand-blown bottles, with a label signed by Blake, will be auctioned by Sotheby’s in March to support the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
“As you can imagine, the planning for this release was a couple of years in the making. And although the world has changed significantly since we first started planning, it was important that we stayed true to what we had set out to do,” explained Samantha Leotta, The Macallan Americas’ brand director. “Given the current landscape, we had to pivot from any in-person activations and find a way to provide consumers with an interactive, engaging and impactful experience that could be enjoyed from the safety of their homes—but most importantly, in a way that was worthy of this special collection and the stories behind it. What we ended up creating was a virtual experience with unique storytelling capabilities and a global reach that we could have never imagined with an in-person activation.”
The Macallan has become known for creating multisensory, immersive IRL experiences, including a consumer pop-up at The Oculus in New York for the launch of The Macallan Edition No. 5 in partnership with Pantone. So it was natural for the brand to continue designing these kinds of events on a larger digital scale.
“We used components from each of these [past] in-person activations as a model when creating The Anecdotes of Ages Virtual Art Exhibit. Although we had done many digital and technology-led activations in the past, they were often complemented by an in-person event,” Leotta explained. “And since that was not an opportunity this time, we knew we had to evoke the same level of impact and education through this virtual experience while leveraging the flexibility of being able to access it across the globe.”
PATRÓN collaborated with celeb tattoo artist JonBoy to curate a collection of designs inspired by the tequila brand’s iconic bee, which are available via the PATRÓN Virtual Gift Wrapper.Photo: Courtesy of PATRÓN
To celebrate National Margarita Day (which is today, BTW!), PATRÓN collaborated with celeb tattoo artist JonBoy to curate a collection of designs inspired by the tequila brand’s iconic bee, which are available via the PATRÓN Virtual Gift Wrapper. Here, consumers can virtually customize their bottles with JonBoy’s designs, their own photos and margarita-inspired designs. The experience is meant to evoke the feeling of sitting in JonBoy’s chair and getting a tattoo. But instead of your arm, you virtually tattoo your bottle of tequila.
Here’s how it works: Go to patrontequila.com/gift-wrap and choose from different designs, upload personal photos and add customized text to both sides of the bottle. Then share a link to the design via text, email or social media. The recipient will be able to see the custom gift wrapping by holding their camera over their box of PATRÓN (or on any surface).
For the launch of Moët Hennessy's New Year’s Eve Wish Shop, Acquolina Catering & Event Management provided white-gloved (and masked) butlers who delivered “room service” trays to homes, which included a decadent charcuterie spread, along with Moët Hennessy brand spirits.Photo: Courtesy of Moët Hennessy USA
3. Create an immersive VIP experience for at-home audiences.
This past holiday season, Moët Hennessy USA launched its New Year’s Eve Wish Shop, which included celeb experiences such as a serenade with Darren Criss and bespoke gifts, as well as a chance to donate to the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. To kick off the program, DKC News’ HangarFour Creative brought New Year’s Eve to life by producing a prerecorded party with festive actors who highlighted different aspects of the Wish Shop. To help at-home attendees get into the mood for the virtual event, Acquolina Catering & Event Management provided white-gloved (and masked) butlers, who delivered “room service” trays to homes, which included a decadent charcuterie spread along with Moët Hennessy brand spirits.
Bourbon brand Wild Turkey recently debuted a guided tasting experience via Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant that’s voiced by the brand’s distillery family, the Russells.Photo: Courtesy of Wild Turkey
Bourbon brand Wild Turkey recently debuted a guided tasting experience via Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant that’s voiced by the brand’s distillery family, the Russells. Here’s how it works: Tell your Alexa-enabled device, “Alexa, enable Wild Turkey Tasting,” or to your Google Assistant device, “Hey Google, talk to Wild Turkey Tasting” to be virtually transported to the Wild Turkey Distillery. Designed for both the novice whiskey drinker and the more mature connoisseur, the audio tour guides listeners through a curated collection of Wild Turkey whiskies, while explaining the distilling process, palate, glassware and more. Wild Turkey worked with the Voicify platform and partnered with Havas CX to design and execute the conversational experience.
Since more than 25% of US households currently have at least one smart speaker in their homes, Wild Turkey hopes to reach new tech-savvy drinkers with this audio experience. “Part of our digital transformation journey is looking at ways to reach new consumers through technology that is already a part of their daily routine—it’s not meant to disrupt as much as take advantage of the explosive growth of interest in bourbon cocktails and culture,” explained Andrea Sengara, vice president of marketing for Campari America. “Coupling our renowned master distillers with this burgeoning technology is a way to drive both consumer consideration and ecommerce sales, since a guided tasting works best when you can sample along at home.”
5. Let the product do the talking. Literally.
At the end of last year, wine label 19 Crimes and Snoop Dogg introduced an augmented-reality experience called “Ask the Doggfather.” Using 8th Wall technology, the hip-hop artist virtually steps off the wine bottles to answer questions. To try it: Go to askthedoggfather.com on your mobile device and scan any bottle of 19 Crimes Snoop Cali Red. Then ask a question and Snoop Dogg will appear as a miniature hologram and offer his wise tidbits. The AR experience was created by augmented-reality studio Tactic, in collaboration with agency Cashmere and software company 8th Wall. To create the interactive label, Snoop was filmed at Metastage studio in L.A., using Microsoft’s volumetric capture technology, which allows a virtual camera (or viewer) to move around live performers at will.
