Good morning, Fingers fam! Your fearless Fingers editor is waltzing into the workweek with a mild hangover and a superabundance of sodium, having spent most of the afternoon/evening eating buffalo wings and drinking a few lagers as one does on Super Bowl Sunday. Last night’s Big Game was the first NFL game I watched in full in at least a year, and to tell you the truth I only turned it on for the commercials. Not in a “ha, ha the commercials are the best part of the Super Bowl” kind of way but also I guess sort of like that now that I think about it.
Anyway! I’ve written a lot about the Super Bowl advertising hustle here at Fingers, including such bangers as:
I also published a fun pair of stories at VinePair this past week that you should read instead of trying to work today about the logistics and chronology of Anheuser-Busch InBev’s three-plus decades of owning the exclusive rights to in-game advertising for alcohol/beer during the nation’s premier marketing/promotional event of the year.
That’s a lot of Super Bowl beverage-brand advertising coverage, if I do say so myself. So rather than bludgeoning you with yet another of my takes, today I want to hear from you instead. Some prompts:
Will any of ABI’s half-dozen ads (played out over the macrobrewer’s whopping four minutes of national air) actually inspire you to drink one of the brands advertised?
The weird techno-optimistic futurism of Bud Light Next’s debut spot—discuss!
Why in the world did Rémy Cointreau drop a bag again to advertise The Botanist Gin in the middle of February… and rehash a vague “save restaurants” message to boot?
How did you think of last night’s Super Bowl ads in the beer/booze/general beverage category stacked up to those in the recent past?
I’d love to hear your take(s) on any/all of the above—or something else entirely! This comment thread is open to everyone, and I’ll be in and out throughout the day. Have a good day, and remember to stay hydrated… or should I say Guy-drated?! No, I should not. Do not try to hydrate with Bud Light Seltzer Hard Soda, you maniacs. See you in the comments!—Dave.
I don't think we got the Liquid Death spot here but in watching it on the interwebs, I think it's kind of cute? My friends in the brand/legal side of the booze world seem to be a bit aghast over it though.
Other than that... the most interesting thing to me has been that my brother was there and paid $20 for a tall Modelo draft (in that I'm mostly impressed he could find a non A-B product).
The legal element is immediately where my head went as well. But like... they don't make alcohol, so what could really happen to them? I don't know! Seems like the worst they could be in for would be a strongly worded letter from, uh, somebody? Ask your brand/legal friends, please.
Whoa, a Modelo for the fellow at the Super Bowl, eh? That *is* shocking. I wonder if Constellation has some sort of sell-in deal with SoFi stadium that couldn't be superseded by ABI's NFL/SB deal?
Legal friend seems more gobsmacked at how much the product looks like beer? I don't know... it's not like the Council of Regulators for Responsible Advertising of Water is going to fine them.
I don't know about SoFi but Constellation has deals with both the Giants and Jets for MetLife. If you listen to an episode of a certain beer industry podcast from 2/2, the legal guests discuss how becoming the official beer of something does not give you exclusive pouring rights because such a scenario would be illegal under the exclusive outlet clause of the FAAA and since A-B got slapped with a $5M OIC in 2020 for exactly this, I'm sure they're more than happy not to infringe upon the independence of SoFI as a retailer. But if you're the SoFi beer manager, I've got to assume you want what's likely the #1 beer in LA represented. ...and I think I've now put anyone else who might be reading this to sleep.
Lolol good point about exclusive outlets, I didn't really think of that. Yeah, obviously SoFi wants/needs Modelo in there because of how big it is in CA... like I was saying on Byliners the other night, this is why ABI needs to bring back Tequiza. They need a credible counterpunch! The time is now!!!
Was watching with a roomful of non beer folk and they all were upset at the idea that water needed to be branded at all, and then a few remarked that it looked like Solemn Oath Brewery's (Chicago-area) branding and they'd be disappointed to learn it was water. At the end when the ad was very anti-plastic, the crowd gave the aluminum > plastic thought a collective hopeful shrug and went back to the guacamole.
Wait explain the part about them being upset that water was branded? Like on the grounds that it's vital to human life and therefore commodifying it for private gain is a perversion of nature? Or like... something else?
the Bud Light zero carb drink completely derailed my Bowl viewing because i had to google "how do they make beer with no carbs" and then found the slightly bonkers (to me) quote from a Budweiser VP that the super secret process of taking the carbs out of beer was "very, very, very, very challenging." then i started spiraling thinking about scientists working in a lab for 10 years trying to take carbs out of beer, using some kind of particle accelerator. anyway it seems like it's going to be a bad-tasting experience lol
Yeah I remember them claiming they've been working on this for a decade when they did the rollout in fall 2021. Serenely thinking about a bunch of zymologists hunkered down inside a bunker deep in a mountain in the American West electrifying bottles of Bud Light Platinum to transubstantiate the carbs into flavor molecules. FOLLOW THE SCIENCE MOLLY.
Anyway what I'm saying is please go funnel a six-pack of BL Next and report back.
someone on twitter just said they liked it more than they expected, i do have to accept the part of myself that would very much appreciate a "slightly flavored fizzy water that gets you a little tipsy"
You've hooked me in on two of my favourite topics—beer and advertising.
Bud Light Next ad is a vibe, but so very clear that the agency were asked "Can you take everything that this young audience love about Euphoria and turn it into a :45 family friendly advert?
That "Loud Flavour" advert is just straight up terrible. Couldn't make it through.
Some of the world's best adverts were for beer: Guinness' "Surfer", Budweiser's "Wassup" and Dos Equis' "Most Interesting Man in the World" are a few that come to mind.
Hate to roll out the cliche, but they don't make 'em like they used to.
Very weird coincidence if it wasn't intentional. Also, the NFT gallery scene was pretty fucking on-the-nose lol.
I agree that the Loud Flavors ad was tacky but I also think it did exactly what it was supposed to do—position the line extension as a relatable/accessible/come-as-you-are choice for drinkers seeking flavor innovation and no pretension. I wrote about it a bit here: https://fingers.substack.com/p/the-fieri-fication-of-hard-seltzer
I went back and watched "Whassup?" a few times last week for some reporting I was doing. Honestly? It's pretty boring! I remember watching it live and thinking it was hysterical. I don't know what to take from this, other than that the advertising bar seems to have been raised significantly since then and we all expect a lot more out of this medium than it's capable of consistently delivering. Like, "Whassup?" would flop hard if you put it on the air today imo. Semi-related, this history of that ad coming together is pretty terrific: https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/budweiser-whassup-commercial-campaign-super-bowl-history
It’s funny, there are certain ads that age well and others that don’t. “Whassup?”is a great example. But hard to underplay the impact it had back then.
Beer advertising is a strange beast. For most, it’s entirely brand based ... just trying to get people to have an affinity with your brand. And then, for most people, their tastebuds will follow suit.
What's the general posture of Canadians towards the Super Bowl? Is there one? Do people watch up there or not really?
Re: beer writing x Super Bowl ads... I know (think?) you're joking but it's an interesting question nonetheless. Does this stuff merit coverage? I like staying abreast of how brands/companies position themselves to mainstream audiences, so I obviously think the answer is a qualified yes (the qualification being that 99% of "coverage" on the subject is embarrassing brand-friendly fluff #content that should never have been "written" in the first place.) But I don't think it's like, an essential part of the beer beat if you focus more on the composition of the liquid and human interest stuff. I dunno. Do you actively avoid considering the ad landscape?
Canadians watch it, I don't know in what sort of numbers, but it's not the capital 'E' event it is south of the border.
I was joking, but at the same time I truly do not give a rat's ass about the ads. When it spills into controversy, I'll watch the repeat on YouTube and maybe weigh in with an opinion, as with the anti-craft beer hoo-ha of several years ago, but from talking frogs to celebrity appearances to Whatsuuuuuuup, it's all so much lipstick on pigs to me.
That said, I do write commentary columns on the industry as a whole, but generally from an international perspective rather than a US or even North American view. So again, the ads don't have much impact on me.
Yeah, fair enough. That ad really made waves at the time. (For the uninitiated, this is the one we're talking about: https://vimeo.com/118512602)
I would really love to read beer ad criticism that's international in scope, comparing the tropes and value propositions and so forth across language/culture/geography/etc. You ever come across anything like that?
I know I said I was going to shut up but one thing I wanted to add to this advertising conversation was this depressing aside from Luke O'Neil (publisher of the very-good Welcome To Hell World newsletter, everybody go subscribe) about all the millennial nostalgia-bait in last night's commercials (Sopranos x Chevy, Lebowski x Mich Ultra) and Dr. Dre-anchored halftime show:
"[I]f you wanted to experience the sense of the rushing onset of your own mortality you could have simply watched the Super Bowl halftime show last night featuring Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg and all them. I thought it was great by the way but then again I am in my forties so I have a conflict of interest here. What a night! Sopranos and Lebowski ads and middle aged rappers. This must have been what it felt like to be a boomer all those years. Yes it’s cynically having your own nostalgia sold back to you but on the other hand at least someone is recognizing you exist."
Ah OK, that makes (slightly) more sense. Yeah I don't get its appearance in the Super Bowl, seems like a lot of money to advertise something that's not a tequila-based RTD. But what do I know? RC ran a fucking ~Cointreau~ ad in last year's Super Bowl, obviously they think it's working for them: https://www.remy-cointreau.com/en/news/cointreau-unveils-love-letter-in-its-first-super-bowl-ad/
What did you wind up doing with The Botanist once you bought it? We've been making Martinezes with herbaceous gins lately (which we weirdly seem to have a lot of for some reason.) Those are kinda nice for winter, but too sweet for my taste. All recommendations accepted!
I drank a bunch of Laphroiag by the fire yesterday, that was pretty tight. Also we made spritzes with amaro, which were great. I don't know why I'm telling you any of this, sorry.
I should get a job at a Super Bowl ad agency because I’m an expert at remembering shit from the ’80s and ’90s.
Well go ahead then—tell us about some shit you remember!
I don't think we got the Liquid Death spot here but in watching it on the interwebs, I think it's kind of cute? My friends in the brand/legal side of the booze world seem to be a bit aghast over it though.
Other than that... the most interesting thing to me has been that my brother was there and paid $20 for a tall Modelo draft (in that I'm mostly impressed he could find a non A-B product).
The legal element is immediately where my head went as well. But like... they don't make alcohol, so what could really happen to them? I don't know! Seems like the worst they could be in for would be a strongly worded letter from, uh, somebody? Ask your brand/legal friends, please.
Whoa, a Modelo for the fellow at the Super Bowl, eh? That *is* shocking. I wonder if Constellation has some sort of sell-in deal with SoFi stadium that couldn't be superseded by ABI's NFL/SB deal?
Legal friend seems more gobsmacked at how much the product looks like beer? I don't know... it's not like the Council of Regulators for Responsible Advertising of Water is going to fine them.
I don't know about SoFi but Constellation has deals with both the Giants and Jets for MetLife. If you listen to an episode of a certain beer industry podcast from 2/2, the legal guests discuss how becoming the official beer of something does not give you exclusive pouring rights because such a scenario would be illegal under the exclusive outlet clause of the FAAA and since A-B got slapped with a $5M OIC in 2020 for exactly this, I'm sure they're more than happy not to infringe upon the independence of SoFI as a retailer. But if you're the SoFi beer manager, I've got to assume you want what's likely the #1 beer in LA represented. ...and I think I've now put anyone else who might be reading this to sleep.
Lolol good point about exclusive outlets, I didn't really think of that. Yeah, obviously SoFi wants/needs Modelo in there because of how big it is in CA... like I was saying on Byliners the other night, this is why ABI needs to bring back Tequiza. They need a credible counterpunch! The time is now!!!
Was watching with a roomful of non beer folk and they all were upset at the idea that water needed to be branded at all, and then a few remarked that it looked like Solemn Oath Brewery's (Chicago-area) branding and they'd be disappointed to learn it was water. At the end when the ad was very anti-plastic, the crowd gave the aluminum > plastic thought a collective hopeful shrug and went back to the guacamole.
Wait explain the part about them being upset that water was branded? Like on the grounds that it's vital to human life and therefore commodifying it for private gain is a perversion of nature? Or like... something else?
Probably some of that underlying, but mostly "why do we need water to be metal"
Because how/why else would men bother hydrating themselves?!
*destroys organs to avoid seeming beta by needing water*
Right, right. But, counterpoint: don't we deserve more metal versions of ordinary things, generally?
the Bud Light zero carb drink completely derailed my Bowl viewing because i had to google "how do they make beer with no carbs" and then found the slightly bonkers (to me) quote from a Budweiser VP that the super secret process of taking the carbs out of beer was "very, very, very, very challenging." then i started spiraling thinking about scientists working in a lab for 10 years trying to take carbs out of beer, using some kind of particle accelerator. anyway it seems like it's going to be a bad-tasting experience lol
Yeah I remember them claiming they've been working on this for a decade when they did the rollout in fall 2021. Serenely thinking about a bunch of zymologists hunkered down inside a bunker deep in a mountain in the American West electrifying bottles of Bud Light Platinum to transubstantiate the carbs into flavor molecules. FOLLOW THE SCIENCE MOLLY.
Anyway what I'm saying is please go funnel a six-pack of BL Next and report back.
someone on twitter just said they liked it more than they expected, i do have to accept the part of myself that would very much appreciate a "slightly flavored fizzy water that gets you a little tipsy"
"Keto Molly Blacks Out" is the phrase that just popped into my head. I'm sorry/you're welcome.
LOL
You've hooked me in on two of my favourite topics—beer and advertising.
Bud Light Next ad is a vibe, but so very clear that the agency were asked "Can you take everything that this young audience love about Euphoria and turn it into a :45 family friendly advert?
That "Loud Flavour" advert is just straight up terrible. Couldn't make it through.
Some of the world's best adverts were for beer: Guinness' "Surfer", Budweiser's "Wassup" and Dos Equis' "Most Interesting Man in the World" are a few that come to mind.
Hate to roll out the cliche, but they don't make 'em like they used to.
Dude I made the same Euphoria connection with my beer writer colleague Jess Infante last night! https://twitter.com/dinfontay/status/1493012529391489024
Very weird coincidence if it wasn't intentional. Also, the NFT gallery scene was pretty fucking on-the-nose lol.
I agree that the Loud Flavors ad was tacky but I also think it did exactly what it was supposed to do—position the line extension as a relatable/accessible/come-as-you-are choice for drinkers seeking flavor innovation and no pretension. I wrote about it a bit here: https://fingers.substack.com/p/the-fieri-fication-of-hard-seltzer
I went back and watched "Whassup?" a few times last week for some reporting I was doing. Honestly? It's pretty boring! I remember watching it live and thinking it was hysterical. I don't know what to take from this, other than that the advertising bar seems to have been raised significantly since then and we all expect a lot more out of this medium than it's capable of consistently delivering. Like, "Whassup?" would flop hard if you put it on the air today imo. Semi-related, this history of that ad coming together is pretty terrific: https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/budweiser-whassup-commercial-campaign-super-bowl-history
It’s funny, there are certain ads that age well and others that don’t. “Whassup?”is a great example. But hard to underplay the impact it had back then.
Beer advertising is a strange beast. For most, it’s entirely brand based ... just trying to get people to have an affinity with your brand. And then, for most people, their tastebuds will follow suit.
Didn't watch. Don't care. Does that make me a bad beer writer?
What's the general posture of Canadians towards the Super Bowl? Is there one? Do people watch up there or not really?
Re: beer writing x Super Bowl ads... I know (think?) you're joking but it's an interesting question nonetheless. Does this stuff merit coverage? I like staying abreast of how brands/companies position themselves to mainstream audiences, so I obviously think the answer is a qualified yes (the qualification being that 99% of "coverage" on the subject is embarrassing brand-friendly fluff #content that should never have been "written" in the first place.) But I don't think it's like, an essential part of the beer beat if you focus more on the composition of the liquid and human interest stuff. I dunno. Do you actively avoid considering the ad landscape?
Canadians watch it, I don't know in what sort of numbers, but it's not the capital 'E' event it is south of the border.
I was joking, but at the same time I truly do not give a rat's ass about the ads. When it spills into controversy, I'll watch the repeat on YouTube and maybe weigh in with an opinion, as with the anti-craft beer hoo-ha of several years ago, but from talking frogs to celebrity appearances to Whatsuuuuuuup, it's all so much lipstick on pigs to me.
That said, I do write commentary columns on the industry as a whole, but generally from an international perspective rather than a US or even North American view. So again, the ads don't have much impact on me.
Yeah, fair enough. That ad really made waves at the time. (For the uninitiated, this is the one we're talking about: https://vimeo.com/118512602)
I would really love to read beer ad criticism that's international in scope, comparing the tropes and value propositions and so forth across language/culture/geography/etc. You ever come across anything like that?
Afraid not. My only guess would be one of the big advertising trades.
Fwiw, ABI got skunked by the post-game ad rankers for the seventh-straight year: https://www.stltoday.com/business/local/anheuser-busch-super-bowl-ads-miss-industry-mark-again/article_23e96db5-44dd-5cdd-9476-cf48ed290772.html
I know I said I was going to shut up but one thing I wanted to add to this advertising conversation was this depressing aside from Luke O'Neil (publisher of the very-good Welcome To Hell World newsletter, everybody go subscribe) about all the millennial nostalgia-bait in last night's commercials (Sopranos x Chevy, Lebowski x Mich Ultra) and Dr. Dre-anchored halftime show:
"[I]f you wanted to experience the sense of the rushing onset of your own mortality you could have simply watched the Super Bowl halftime show last night featuring Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg and all them. I thought it was great by the way but then again I am in my forties so I have a conflict of interest here. What a night! Sopranos and Lebowski ads and middle aged rappers. This must have been what it felt like to be a boomer all those years. Yes it’s cynically having your own nostalgia sold back to you but on the other hand at least someone is recognizing you exist."
https://luke.substack.com/p/waiting-for-a-different-kind-of-drowning
https://twitter.com/lukeoneil47/status/1493020187506978823
Haha wait did someone recommend you their gin as like... an acceptable substitute for whiskey just because they were from the same place?
Ah OK, that makes (slightly) more sense. Yeah I don't get its appearance in the Super Bowl, seems like a lot of money to advertise something that's not a tequila-based RTD. But what do I know? RC ran a fucking ~Cointreau~ ad in last year's Super Bowl, obviously they think it's working for them: https://www.remy-cointreau.com/en/news/cointreau-unveils-love-letter-in-its-first-super-bowl-ad/
What did you wind up doing with The Botanist once you bought it? We've been making Martinezes with herbaceous gins lately (which we weirdly seem to have a lot of for some reason.) Those are kinda nice for winter, but too sweet for my taste. All recommendations accepted!
I drank a bunch of Laphroiag by the fire yesterday, that was pretty tight. Also we made spritzes with amaro, which were great. I don't know why I'm telling you any of this, sorry.