Intel Blog

Canadian Whisky Awards 2010

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 08:42:53 -0600

Source: CanadianWhisky.org December 6, 2010 Canadian Whisky Awards 2010 - The Winners Canada's top whiskies of 2010 are honoured in these, the first annual Canadian Whisky Awards. There are six awards in all. The winners of three awards were decided following extensive tastings, while the others were selected based on special contributions that individual whiskies make to expanding consumer interest in Canadian whisky. Canadian whisky is one of Canada's greatest ambassadors. Every year, millions and millions of whisky lovers around the world buy more than half a billion dollars worth of Canadian whisky. But the awards celebrate more than successful sales figures. Canadians appreciate the contribution Canadian whisky makes to our economy, but we never stop to recognize the excellent quality of these whiskies. All of that now changes with these awards. The Canadian Whisky Awards recognize the very finest flavoured new Canadian whiskies released in 2010, along with special contributions of highly successful individual whiskies that have garnered favourable attention to Canadian whisky in 2010. Virtually every Canadian whisky introduced in Canada or the U.S. in 2010 was tasted. The best was chosen in one of three categories: the Canadian market, the export market, and multiple markets. Awards of Excellence are also conferred for accomplishments in innovation, brand extension, and notable success in raising the profile of Canadian whisky in general. The Connoisseur Whiskies: Connoisseur Whisky of the Year - Domestic Market: Wiser's Legacy Wiser's Legacy is a new, ultra-premium rye whisky from Corby Distillers. This rich, complex, and flavourful whisky has been compared favourably to high-end single malts. Although demand has become strong to release it in other markets, Wiser's Legacy was initially available in the Canadian market only. Connoisseur Whisky of the Year - Export Market: Caribou Crossing Caribou Crossing Single Barrel whisky was released early in 2010 to high acclaim from whisky writers and connoisseurs. They were all impressed with this complex and richly flavoured new whisky. As a single barrel whisky, Caribou Crossing introduces a new Canadian whisky in a style much admired by connoisseurs. Connoisseur Whisky of the Year - Multiple Markets: Forty Creek Confederation Oak Reserve This is an iconic Canadian whisky matured in Canadian oak barrels made from trees that sprouted at the time of Canadian Confederation. Made in a winemaker's fashion, by John Hall, Forty Creek Confederation Oak Reserve earns this award for its creamy, rich and robust flavours. Confederation Oak is available in Canada and selected U.S. markets. The Awards of Excellence: Innovation of the Year: Highwood Distillery, White Owl Whisky White Owl Whisky has no peer in Canada or anywhere else in the world for that matter. The first ever fully oak-matured white whisky, White Owl retains the flavours of Canadian rye whisky, while adding the cocktail-mixability of white spirits. In so doing, it successfully introduces the flavours of Canadian whisky to a whole new demographic. Award of Excellence - Brand Extension: Crown Royal Black When a distiller can't keep up with demand everyone takes note. This new, more robust version of Canada's best selling whisky, Crown Royal Black was welcomed so enthusiastically by American whisky drinkers that Diageo was faced with the challenge of having a truly runaway success on their hands. To the average American whisky drinker, Crown Royal Black was THE big whisky news of 2010. Award of Excellence - Canadian Whisky Profile: Canadian Club Viewers of AMC's Emmy and Golden Globe-winning television series, Mad Men will not be surprised by the winner in this category. As Don Draper's whisky of choice, Canadian Club was featured prominently throughout the series, attracting the attention of a new generation of Canadian whisky consumers. Canadian Club reached yet another new audience in 2010 with its featured role in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire. Hearty and well-deserved congratulations to all the winners. More information about each of the 2010 Canadian Whisky Awards winners will be posted here over the next two weeks. About the Canadian Whisky Awards The Canadian Whisky Awards are presented annually to recognize the very best Canadian whiskies. The Awards are fully independent of the Canadian whisky industry and operate on a not-for-profit basis. Canadianwhisky.org gratefully acknowledges the support and encouragement of Lawrence Graham, Serge Valentin, Mark Gillespie, Ralf Mitchell, Chip Dykstra, Keith Wood, Jason Debly, Mark Connelly, Johannes van den Heuvel, Oliver Klimek, and Sam Simmons.

Katrina Five Years Later - Some Thoughts

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 13:45:06 -0600

By Lane Casteix Five years after the event, Katrina still defines New Orleans in many ways. BUT ... life goes on, the city is recovering, people have come back and rebuilt homes and businesses. Today, you can go through some areas of the city and get the impression this Katrina thing was all Hollywood. It wasn't, let me assure you. You can ride through other areas and discover not a lot has changed since the storm, except much of the damage is gone, picked up by FEMA, replaced by green space in the place of the death-gray left by the receding flood waters. Down here in New Orleans, late August is a painful time, as the subject of Katrina invariably comes up in conversations, even though we suffer from "Katrina Fatigue" just as much as the rest of you do. As much as we would like it to go away, it won't, because it is etched into the soul of those of us who call this area home. But we get over the annual Katrina Funk by about the second week of September. Since the State of Louisiana gives generous tax credits for movies made in the state, Louisiana, especially New Orleans, has become "Hollywood South". It is fairly common to have your neighborhood, your business, or your commute affected by a hoard of movie vans and blocked streets. We work around the inconvenience, because it brings revenue to the state, and it is kind of cool, actually. Going back as far as I can remember, I can't recall any movie made in or about New Orleans being even remotely accurate in its depiction of the local culture. (Danzel Washington's Deja Vu made right after Katrina came close in a passing fashion.) That was true until HBO launched Treme, a series about post-Katrina New Orleans. It received fair viewership outside of the local area, but here it has god-like status for those who have seen it and know the local culture. Treme has done a great job of nailing New Orleans and is worth watching. And the music is great! The first season is concluded, and a second season has been ordered. I have included a trailer for your viewing but be warned - STRONG LANGUAGE. And then comes BP, attempting to top Katrina. That turned out to be not nearly as bad as we all thought. Do you realize just how large the Gulf of Mexico is? And did you know that ALL the spilled oil would not fill the Super Dome but about one seventh?! Did you know the Gulf floor naturally oozes about a super tanker of oil per year? Did you know the Gulf has natural microbes that feast on that oil? This has been like Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner rolled together for them! They can't even find the oil out there now! The worst seems to be over and I, for one, am eating whatever seafood I can get - and it tastes great. Had some boiled shrimp and blue crabs last Friday and a fried shrimp poboy Sunday! The Gulf Coast is still in business. My family took our July vacation in Destin, Florida and enjoyed emerald green water and sugar sand beaches with only an occasional BP beachcomber passing by and looking bored. New Orleans is not still flooded from Katrina, and the Gulf is not covered by a giant oil slick! We are open for business. There are actually more restaurants open now than before the storm, including just about all of the old favorites and several new ones destined for "old favorite" status. Oh, and how 'bout dem Saints?! So, come on down, have some seafood, drink some coffee, have a bignet and laissez les bon temps rouler!

Packaging Goes High Tech!

Tue, 13 Apr 2010 14:22:28 -0600

By Lane Casteix Medea Vodka, an upscale vodka out of Holland, has introduced a striking new package that includes a programmable LED display on the bottle. You can create up to six personal messages with as many as 255 characters in each to play on the bottle. And if you can't figure out how to use it, here are the handy programming instructions with a suggested application.

How to Program a Message on Your MEDEA Bottle from Medea Spirits on Vimeo.

Nice tag on that last vid!

Old Spice Commercials

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 13:22:02 -0600

By Lane Casteix I haven't used Old Spice since I was a teenager (yes, a long time ago and another galaxy), but these commercials just might make me try it again. Not because of the messages, but because they are so darn well done!

Saints Win! Who dat?

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 10:46:21 -0600

By Lane Casteix Monday morning and New Orleans is recovering from an all night party. Many schools and business are closed or experiencing high absenteeism. I predicted a win for the Saints by 7 and missed by a half. They clearly showed they have what it takes to be world champions. In the second half of the game you saw the powerhouse Saints with their mojo back. It was an impressive performance. The Super Bowl commercials were not as good as in years past but there were a few winners. if you want to see them all, Ad Age has them up for your viewing pleasure. Who dat?!

It's that time again! II

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:53:16 -0600

By Lane Casteix This time I am talking about the Super Bowl and its commercials. This one is from our old friend Doritos and was "banned". Not too hard to see why. Evidently this one from Doritos made the cut. And here is Go Daddy's "banned" commercial Lola. I didn't know Bret had recovered from the whoop-ass the Who Dats put on him. And there will be more to come....

It's that time again!

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:17:01 -0600

By Lane Casteix No, not the Super Bowl (but it is that as well). I mean the 2010 Winter Olympics! And what does that have to do with advertising you ask? Ever pay much attention to the "uniforms" of the different nations? Here are a few interesting ones to refresh your memory. But this year Ralph Lauren designed them for the Americans. Remember how small the little polo player logo is on your RL shirt. Check it out now! I guess Ralph really wants everyone to know who designed it? Or maybe every U.S. Olympic Team member is actually on the U.S. polo team? Including the winter team? I sure hope they don't flip their collars up like that! Who decided that was cool? It isn't!

Wear Your Seat Belt!

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:45:59 -0600

By Lane Casteix This ad was stolen from the AdGabber web site, where Steve Hall touts it as a having a powerful message, and I have to agree. This ranks as one of the most effective commercials I have ever seen. It reaches the heart with the message and drives it home in a memorable - and actionable fashion. Enjoy.
Find more videos like this on AdGabber

How are you going to refuse a starving, three-legged cat?

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:28:02 -0600

By Lane Casteix Someone said yell at a dog and they will come back, but yell at a cat and that will be the last time you see it. That doesn’t work; I have yelled and they keep coming back! I have been trying to get pet-free since my last dog died a few years ago. Only had one mean-as-hell, very old, inside cat left to go. Since then, the mean-as-hell, very old, inside cat is still alive, and getting older and meaner, plus I have managed to add three chickens and four feral cats to the program. That is down from six feral cats, so I guess we count that as progress? The original six started out as kittens dropped in my yard by a neighbor’s cat. That got whittled down to two when one disappeared, two moved in with neighbors down the street, and another disappeared right after I had him fixed and spent $80 on him to help his poor eyesight. (Didn’t like my choice of frames?) Two left! Then a homeless female shows up at the food dish followed by a very skinny, three-legged male. I don’t know how he lost his lower rear leg, but he gets along fairly well without it. I am a sucker for animals, especially for things like skinny, three-legged, feral cats! In particular, the vocal ones who speak to me, and he is a talker! Took a while but I have tamed him, and he has become a very affectionate little cat, and putting on weight. What is this all about? (You knew this was leading somewhere?) The lesson my cat story can teach us is this: the things that touch our hearts are the things we will spend our time and money on. What that means is customers must care about the brand, because those customers spend their time and money on what they are passionate about. I am not suggesting you cut off a leg to gain sympathy, but unless the customer develops some kind of emotional connection to your brand, it isn’t really their brand. And if it isn’t really theirs, another brand can come along that gets them to care, and it will become their brand. I didn’t want these cats, but they have become mine because they made me care. That is easy for animals to do, I know, but brands can do this also. Two classic examples of brands that really pull this off are Harley Davidson and Apple. The question is how do we establish that emotional connection? And I am not suggesting it is easy. HD and Apple have relationships with their customers and always have. There is a bond there. They listened when others were telling. And they responded to what they heard. Social media is a tool that brands can use to develop better hearing. Some brands are using this new tool and discovering new things about themselves and their customers. And some are trying to use it but failing, because they are still telling and not listening. Are you listening or telling? Shut up, listen – then respond.

Prospering in a Down Economy, Part 5

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:05:28 -0600

By Lane Casteix Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 As you can see from the links above, I have written about businesses prospering in a down economy. Those that do prosper are the ones who don't pull in their marketing efforts but see the weak economy as a chance to steal market share. And low and behold here comes evidence from this recession for what I have been preaching.

Halloween at SPAR

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:48:49 -0600

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

What Can Chickens Teach Us About Packaging?

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:45:47 -0600

By Lane Casteix Some of you know I have become a “chicken rancher” after reading an article in the New Orleans Times Picayune about urban chickens. It is becoming quite popular to raise your own chickens for eggs even in urban settings. My flock consists or three Rhode Island Red laying hens I bought as two-day old chicks and raised myself. They live in a luxurious (for chickens anyway) coop I built for them that keeps them dry, safe, and cozy. The coop and fenced run cost me a small fortune, even though I used some recycled materials. As a result, these eggs are not cheaper than buying them in the store! But they are very good: richer-colored orange yokes, firmer less runny texture, and more flavor. I eat lots of eggs, but three chickens lay more than I can eat; so I give eggs away and make others happy like me. I have been posting about my chickens on Facebook, and for no particular reason other than it seemed like fun. But as this process moved along, I began to realize that chickens, dumb as they are, can teach us many things as posted here and here. For example: Is there a package more perfect than the egg? It is elegantly simple in design, effective in protecting its valuable contents, pilfer-evident yet easy to open, and is sustainable green. What more could you ask for? Let’s take these one at a time. Elegantly simple design – The most effective package designs, from the standpoint of marketing and sales, are those that convey their message to the consumer without unnecessary bravo sierra messing up an otherwise tidy design. The egg communicates, and it does it very elegantly! It tells the chicken it needs protection and nurturing. There are exceptions for pure layers like mine; they lay the egg and shake out their feathers and walk away to feed and make another one, somehow expecting the egg to disappear, picked up by the egg gatherer. The egg tells the egg gatherer, be he a person or a predator looking for a free meal, that he just found food. I bet someone or something that never saw an egg before would conclude this strange object was indeed food. And if you think they can’t be branded, you are wrong. Different chickens lay different eggs. They may be different sizes and shapes, white, brown, spotted, or speckled; and there is even a breed, the Ameracuna, that lays colored eggs - pastel blues and greens, which is why they are also called “Easter-eggers”. The egg conveys its core brand message without undue fuss. I wish all packages were that simple and that elegant of design. Effective contents protection – They look fragile but they are not. When I was a mere lad I read somewhere, probably “Boy’s Life”, that you could toss an egg over the roof of a house, and assuming it did not land on something really hard like concrete or my sister’s head, it would not break. Yeah, right! So, I tried it. I conducted my egg experiment at our summer home in Mississippi, which had an abundance of pine trees in the yard and not a lot of grass, at least not a thick layer. (My dad liked it that way; less grass to cut.) I tossed that puppy over the house and guess what? It DID NOT break! I did it twice – same results. That is tough! Then my mother caught me and took my egg away to serve for breakfast. The egg comes out of the chicken with a wet coating, which is called a “bloom”. It dries in a matter of seconds; almost like it is alcohol. The bloom provides protection for the egg against invasion by micro-organisms through the porous shell, so you don’t wash eggs when you collect them. Eggs, unwashed and unrefrigerated, will keep for an amazingly long time with very little loss of quality. Pilfer evident yet easy to open – It is pretty obvious when the egg’s package has been compromised; the shell is cracked and often oozing. And if the compromise took place some time ago your nose supports the obvious visual clues. But they are easy to open too. Some shells are harder than others, depending on how much calcium the chicken has consumed. Grocery store eggs tend to be thin shelled, having come from “egg-machines” living out brief lives in cramped spaces bordering on miserable. I feed my happy chickens grapes, strawberries, and cracked corn with their laying mix, and they get to free range and consume the big juicy and delicious (for a chicken) wood roaches we have all over south Louisiana. I also feed them crushed oyster shells for extra calcium. They self-regulate how much they need, and my chicken’s eggs require a goodly smack to crack the shell. (Bet I could toss them over a two-story house!) All packages should be this pilfer evident and yet this easy to open. Sustainable green – Can’t get any “greener” than an eggshell. They are organic in origin and can be easily recycled back into the bio-system, either as mulch in your garden or fed back to the chicken for reprocessing. Yes, chickens will eat their own eggshells, but it is best not to serve them up looking much like the whole egg, lest they figure out they don’t have to wait for you to bring the shells back. It is the ultimate returnable! And no deposit – unless you count the grapes, strawberries and chicken feed. So, what do we have? Packaged goods producers and package designers can take lessons from the egg. Effective packaging need not always be complex and complicated. Simple is much better and more effective. (Someday, maybe I will get to design an egg-elegant package?) Chickens make eggs, and man makes clamshell packaging. Have we have lost our packaging way?

Who needs a rooster?

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 16:07:43 -0600

By Lane Casteix Did you know you can get eggs from a hen without the rooster? (Kind of distressing for us males, when you think about that.) The rooster is a “logical requirement” for the process, but the “roosterless” egg is just as high in nourishment, just as tasty, and even more desirable by me (no rooster to wake me or my neighbors up). A successful brand often does not have a logic component. My hens “sing the egg song” when they are about to lay an egg. The emotional content is there for them without the logic component. Solid successful brands are not always logical. Is Harley Davidson logical? You can buy cheaper bikes and even better ones, but HD is an enduring brand that defies logic, because its customers have a deep emotional attachment to the brand. Heart trumps logic.

Facts or Flavor?

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:54:01 -0600

By Lane Casteix My pet chickens think I am a rooster, and it isn’t because I look like one; it is their perception of me. Much like a real rooster I take care of my hens and provide them with food, shelter, and protection – and lots of tasty treats. I satisfy their most basic needs, but do you think that is the reason they like me? “Hey, there’s the ‘rooster’ that built our coop, feeds us and protects us! Let’s go show some gratitude!” When I walk outside they come running and are very interested in me, until they figure out I am not holding a dish of treats like grapes or watermelon. More likely they thought, “Hey, there is our ‘rooster’, and maybe he has some delicious treats for us!” Successful brands are perceived as “roosters” in that they fulfill some deep personal desire in their customers. Is your marketing offering your customers facts or flavor?

Social Media is Free, Right?

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:15:20 -0600

By Lane Casteix One of the most annoying statements I have heard recently is that social media is cheap (or even free). It can do and be a lot of things but one thing it is not is cheap! It is "cheap" only in the sense there is little or no cost-of-goods-sold (COGS) associated with it as with old media, like newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, out of home (OOH), etc. Sure, you can set up a Twitter or Facebook account and even create a blog for zero bucks. But there is a huge cost in time attached to maintaining a social media presence, especially if the effort is serious with goals and measurable results. And the more complex the campaign, the more time expensive it becomes. Not only does the agency need to devote a considerable number of billable hours to setting up a social media presence and then monitoring and managing the effort, but the client must also make a time commitment to help set it up, supply training and even content for those responsible for executing. For the client to both initiate the design and administer the execution on their own, they can expect to at least double the commitment they would have had if they had commissioned an agency. A serious social media campaign is probably one half of a full-time employee dedicated to the process. A really good, social media savvy, company executive can take on the project but will need to dedicate a major portion of his week to it, like maybe 10-20 hours a week. Do you have that kind of time laying around begging to be used? You either pay someone outside the company to do this or dedicate someone inside the company to do it; either way it is not cheap, but it can pay huge dividends for the right client/product.