Esquire has devoted six pages in its January issue, on sale December 4, to a Woodford Reserve-inspired search for the great American cocktail. The three-part editorial sees Esquire joining Woodford Reserve’s brand ambassador, Thomas Vernon, on a road trip across the US to find the most unusual and iconic American bars serving the best cocktails.
Part One focuses on New York where the Esquire team and Vernon visit a number of famous cocktail bars from the King Cole bar at the St Regis Hotel and the classic speakeasy PDT (Please Don’t Tell) to Hotel Elysee’s Monkey Bar. In the article, Vernon talks about the past and future of drinking, the science of spirits and the art of service. “Sophistication and style never go out of service, they just come back round again,” he is quoted as saying.
The centrepiece of the editorial roll-fold is a re-awakened image of an old Esquire cover, featuring Dustin Hoffman in New York, which has been cleverly re-designed to include a large bottle of Woodford Reserve. Part two and three of the Great American cocktail road trip will be featured in later Esquire issues and will cover bars in Chicago and Seattle.
The four month partnership between Esquire and Woodford Reserve is designed to bring to life the Don Draper style urban sophistication, which is at the heart of the Woodford reserve brand.
The campaign will be supported by real time online blogs, a Foursquare link up with Woodford Reserve recommended cocktail bars in the UK, driving visitors to try Great American Cocktails, as well as the launch of a manual on the anatomy of a cocktail which will be available at Esquire & Woodford Reserve “Great American Cocktail” UK events planned for spring 2013.
Esquire Editor, Alex Bilmes, says: “I’m delighted that Woodford Reserve has chosen Esquire for this creative partnership. Both brands are iconic, they have a strong heritage and are synonymous with style, trend and coolness. By utilising the creative excellence of our editorial team, the impressive reach of our brand and buzz of our online and social media, Woodford Reserve has developed the best and most relevant route to market.”
Woodford Reserve Brand Manager, Ffion Jones, says: “We are very excited to be working with Esquire on what is a key awareness and engagement driving campaign for Woodford Reserve. The partnership with Esquire allows us to effectively bring to life the urban sophistication and vintage glamour at the heart of the Woodford Reserve brand for our target consumer, reaching them through the relevant channels of print, digital and social media.”
Head of Ideation at UM London, Andy Corcoran, says: “With this campaign, we wanted our media to reflect the spirit of the Woodford Reserve drinker, which is why we’ve gone way beyond a traditional partnership. These are people who want to delve a little deeper, and get a stronger experience of everything they do – which seems a perfect fit with the Esquire reader.”
The Woodford Reserve gatefold runs in the latest issue of Esquire, on sale December 4.
