Followup on Five Wives Vodka flap

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A few days ago, I reported ("Idaho joins ranks of the nanny states") that the Idaho Liquor Control Division has banned the sale of Utah-made Five Wives Vodka because its title may offend Mormons whose religion once allowed polygamy.

Part of the fallout from that ludicrous position -- polygamy has been outlawed since the 1800s -- was the possibility that the distiller, Ogden's Own Distillery, was considering withdrawing as a sponsor of the upcoming Boise Music Festival.

However, the distiller reconsidered after seeing a lot of public support for their product in Idaho.More than 1,000 T-shirts emblazoned with "Free the Five Wives" have been sold in the past few days. The company said it will use the proceeds to help underwrite the music festival at the original level of commitment. It will continue selling the T-shirts online.

"We are absolutely humbled by the support of the people in our neighboring state," said Steve Conlin, partner and vice president of marketing for Ogden's Own Distillery told the Idaho Statesman. "We've sold so many T-shirts to Idaho residents that we think it is only fair to give those proceeds back in sponsorship dollars. We feel bad that we can't get the shirts out fast enough."

Due to many state laws, the company cannot ship directly, but is hoping to have an online distributor available in 26 states early next week.

Ogden's Own is a micro-distillery located in Ogden, UT, the city's first licensed distillery since the 1800s. Its first product, Underground Herbal Spirit, won a Double Gold award at the 2010 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

Incidentally, the vintage photo used on the label of Five Wives is of an old, scandalous vaudeville group, not a group of Mormon wives. The Salt Lake Tribune did some digging to get the background on the story. A fun read, available here.

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Maker's Mark gets court seal of approval

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The first time I visited Maker’s Mark bourbon in Loretto, KY, I was invited to dip a just-filled bottle in the distillery’s iconic melted red wax.

In my enthusiasm, I plunged the neck of the bottle into the molten vat a bit too vigorously, and wound up with dripping wax coating the neck, half the bottle and my hand up to the wrist. My face was as red as the wax.

That embarrassing moment has always stayed with me, so when I saw a legal decree involving the wax seal, it naturally caught my attention.

From now on, if you see a whiskey with a dripping wax seal on its and it doesn't say Maker's Mark on the label, you may be seeing something illegal.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has held that the red, wax seal that covers the stopper on bottles of Maker’s Mark bourbon is a protected trademark that must be used exclusively by that brand.The ruling follows a lawsuit in which Maker’s Mark Distillery Inc. sought to prevent a similar seal from being used on bottles of Jose Cuervo tequila.

It's not the use of a wax seal, per se, that is the problem. Lots of distillers use wax seals -- Knob Creek, for one, and even Cuervo for years. Rather, it is the design of the seal that Maker's Mark worries about.

Until 2001, Cuervo bottles had been crowned with a straight-edge seal, then the design was changed to an uneven style that made the wax look as if it were dripping down the bottle neck, a la Maker's which was trademarked in 1985.

Judge John Heyburn II of the District Court for the Western District of Kentucky ruled in favor of Maker’s Mark on the dual points of infringement and trademark validity. This was upheld on appeal at the Sixth Circuit.

In their ruling, the three appeal judges noted: "The company has bottled bourbon for commercial sale under the Maker’s Mark name, and has used a red dripping-wax seal on its Maker’s Mark bourbon bottles, since 1958. Maker’s Mark -- and craft bourbon generally – garnered national attention when The Wall Street Journal published a front-page article about the bourbon, the red dripping-wax seal, and the family behind it ['Maker’s mark goes against the grain to make its mark,' by David P. Garino, 1980]."Furthermore, the appeal judges noted, a 2002 Business Week report declared the dripping-wax seal "one of the most recognizable branding symbols in the world." Six years later, the "CBS Sunday Morning" show referred to the factory process for applying the feature as the "famous dip in red sealing wax."

These findings, said the judges, "support the district court’s ultimate conclusion regarding the breadth of market recognition of Maker’s Mark’s trademarked, red dripping-wax seal."

Also, the judges wrote, "There is more than one way to seal a bottle with wax to make it look appealing.

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World's largest gin collection in UK hotel

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Duplessis (l) accepts the award.

OXFORDSHIRE, England -- The Feathers Hotel in Woodstock has officially been proclaimed the holder of the largest collection of gin in the world.

A Guinness Book of World Records adjudicator visited the hotel to count the 161 different varieties of gin stocked by the hotel bar as a crowd of guests and employees looked on for the entire 45 minute inspection.

Jeremy Duplessis, hotel general manager, said, "It's absolutely fantastic to be crowned a world record breaker. We have been building on the collection for three years and have picked up gins from all corners of the world -- from Holland, Spain, the U.S.A. and Germany as well as Britain, home of the famous London Gin, so it's great to have our efforts rewarded."

The hotel also stocks some of the world's most exclusive gins. For example, a bottle of Vincenzi 1950 comes in at US$348; a single glass of Burnett's White Satin 1960 will set drinkers back US$30; and, a seven-course dinner paired with gins is US$116.

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Dowd on drinks ... on radio ... on demand

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Wm. Dowd graphic

I made another appearance on WAMC Northeast Public Radio today, this time discussing rums with "The Roundtable" host Joe Donahue and news maven Ray Graf.

If, for some inexcusable reason, you missed the show, all you have to do is click here to tune in to the 25-minute program.The trio of rums under discussion today were markedly different from each other:

• Serralles Don Q Añejo (Puerto Rico)• Ron Miel Guanche Arehucas (Canary Islands, Spain)• Banks 5 Island Rum (Various Caribbean countries)
Incidentally, if you want to hear an earlier program I did on WAMC concerning the history of whiskey, just click here.

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Celebri-quote: Christina Hendricks

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• Men, do you think you have no chance of getting close to "Mad Men"  siren Christina Hendricks? Well, that probably is true -- if you don't drink whiskey. Here's what she had to say on the subject in an interview with The Sun of London.

"I love it when a man orders Scotch. Most women find it a big turn-on.

"I've always been attracted to men who exude confidence and a sense of purpose in life. A man is much sexier when he is able to project a very clear impression of who he is and can take charge of situations.

"Women like to feel a man can protect us when we need that or feel vulnerable. A bit of swagger mixed in with a good sense of humor is important."

[Go here for an archive of celebri-quotes.]

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Sherwin-Williams Marketing Campaign

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With the construction industry struggling in this economy, the paint industry isn't much better. In order to stay successful, Sherwin-Williams created a marketing campaign targeted to the everyday person and inspiring them to pick up a brush and do the painting on their own.
With a tagline "Make the most of your color with the very best paint", the new ads both encourage the customer to do it themselves and convince them Sherwin-Williams is the best brand. Over the last year, the ads have proven incredibly successful and Sherwin-Williams has managed to continue to grow and stay ahead of the industry.


Sherwin-Williams 2011 Commercial:


For further reading: http://www.forbes.com/sites/keithlevy/2011/11/08/sherwin-williams-is-painting-a-new-picture-of-marketing/

Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo! are New Ad Partners

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Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo! recently formed advertising agreements that will hopefully increase the reach and display of their ads. This partnership was most likely formed to increase their competition against Google, who dominate the web page and web search advertisement market. The agreement allows companies to offer each other's unreserved display inventory to each other's customers. Basically, the three companies will share customers and ads and place them in the best available places on their websites.


This marketing partnership is a great move for the three companies. With Google clearly leading the competition, this agreement will provide more opportunities for Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo! to receive more webpage hits.

For further reading: http://www.forbes.com/2011/11/09/yahoo-microsoft-and-aol-form-advertising-partnership-marketnewsvideo.html

State Farm's New Commercial

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Last month, State Farm Insurance Agency released a new commercial featuring the Green Bay Packers Quarterback, Aaron Rodgers. The ad promotes State Farm's "Discount Double Check" program, and displays the player's signature touchdown dance as the new "discount double check dance". Since the release of the commercial, State Farm's buzz score increased dramatically, specifically within football fans and Wisconsin residents. Add this commercial to their previously existing ads that pair a catchy slogan / jingle, "Like a Good Neighbor, State Farm is There", with a perfect balance of comedy and a relatable lifestyle, State Farm has a flawless advertising campaign.  

Personally, I think State Farms ads are hilarious. Theirs are among the few ads that I actually like watching. The new Aaron Rodgers, "Discount Double Check" commercial fits right in with the rest. In this way, State Farm should be an inspiration for other companies marketing teams. Grab the consumers attention and get a jingle stuck in their head without being annoying? Sounds like a successful ad campaign.


The Aaron Rodgers Commercial:



For further reading:  http://www.forbes.com/sites/brandindex/2011/11/16/aaron-rodgers-ad-lifts-up-state-farm-among-football-fans-wisconsinites/

Google's New Digital Music Store

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Watch out Apple. Google’s really coming after you now.

First, it was the Droid, Google’s smartphone that’s becoming stronger and tougher competition for the Apple iPhone. Now, it’s Google Music, Google’s new music download store, and the first real competition to Apple’s iTunes.
Wanting to expand its product line as the new face of social networking and digital technology, Google introduced its own music store, which will sell tracks and full albums. Google Music allows users to store its songs on “cloud accounts”, where friends can have one free listen to any friend’s bought track. Users will also be able to listen to their own music on any device or computer, something Apple iTunes charges $25 per year.
The only obstacle to this new product is that Google has been unable to form a partnership with the Warner Music Group, the third largest major label. However, Google Music is ready to sell $13 million songs, from three of the four major record labels.
This new business venture is one that, I think, will prove to be successful for Google. Apple iTunes, as dominant as it is, is expensive and sometimes difficult. If Google Music is marketed as the new place to buy music, with lower rates and simpler ways to move your own music, this could be hugely popular and profitable. Best case scenario, as it improves and grows, Google Music could have a strong hold in the music downloading industry, becoming strong competition for iTunes and propelling Google even further in the social networking and entertainment industry.
For further reading: http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/16/google-opens-a-digital-music-store/?src=me&ref=business

Smirnoff's New Flavors

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Smirnoff, the world’s largest vodka brand, just added two new flavors:  Fluffed Marshmallow and Whipped Cream. To go with these new flavors, they are launching a new, edgy campaign estimated between $8 million to $11 million. The campaign features commercials, print ads and billboards and will be shown in places where most viewers are above the age of 21. With competitors like Three Olives and Pinnacle Vodka, who already have sweet vodka flavors like bubblegum, cake, cotton candy, and whipped cream, Smirnoff needed a fantastic campaign to convince consumers to buy theirs instead.  


With the two new flavors and the new campaign Smirnoff is definitely making the right moves. The new ad campaign plays to the fun side of vodka and the new flavors play to the sweet side. Between the two, viewers will be too interested and curious to resist. Also, since no other vodka brand has a marshmallow flavor, Smirnoff now has an edge on its competitors. Even if the flavor sounds not so great, Smirnoff has one flavor the others don’t. And being a trusted name in the industry, Smirnoff is bound to increase sales.
For further reading: http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/17/how-do-you-drink-your-vodka-fluffed-no-chaser/?ref=business

AMG's $16,500 Viella 12 Turntable and Tonearm For Serious Audiophiles.

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If you've got some serious respect for vinyl, the precision engineered AMG Viella 12 (aka “V12”) turntable may be the next piece of high end audio equipment for you. Of course it'll cost you - at $16,500 with the 12" tonearm and $13,500 without the tonearm.




With all the machining custom done in Munich, precision engineering and classic design are embodied in the first turntable from AMG (Analog Manufaktur Germany, formerly Benz AMG). The AMG turntable line was created by a group of audio industry experts to advance the art of vinyl playback.





Werner Roeschlau, designer and driving force behind AMG, works with his son and other master machinists at their bespoke multi-story Bavarian factory located north of Munich. All machining is done in house, combining the latest Computer Aided Design and CNC machines with “classic analog” tools including custom lathes and drill presses. Their factory has been manufacturing key, precision parts for some of the world's most highly regarded turntables for over a decade. This expertise in the design and manufacture of turntables led to the AMG line, premiering with the Viella 12.






Technical Specsifications

Viella Turntable Plinth:
CNC machined in house using 25mm aircraft grade aluminum
3 adjustable and retractable steel-copper spikes in aluminum feet
Built-in spirit level
Optional hardwood trim

Viella Turntable Platter Bearing:
Hardened 16mm axle bearing, CNC machined, ground and lapped Two sealed, hydro-dynamically lubricated radial bearings with axial bearings featuring static lubrication.
Stainless steel sub-platter interfaces with 24.25 lbs (11Kg) platter

Viella Turntable Platter:
Decoupled spindle, 2 piece construction
CNC machined in house using aircraft grade aluminum
Weighted rim for enhanced flywheel effect
12.5 “ (318mm) diameter, 24.25 lbs (11Kg) weight

Viella Turntable Platter Clamp:
True reflex style, anodized aluminum, inverted threaded attachment to decoupled spindle

Viella Turntable Tonearm Board:
Detachable high mass tonearm board, pre-drilled for AMG and Graham tonearms

Viella Turntable Motor:
Lorenzi 2 pulse, low-speed brushless, precision 24v DC motor with auxiliary reluctance moment; sintered bronze bearings; cured and polished axis; and heavy flywheel. Motor housing acoustically decoupled from plinth via 5 rubber/metal mounts.

33.3, 45, and 78 speeds with electronic on/off, speed change, and speed fine adjust.

Outboard Motor Power Supply with specific transformer for appropriate mains voltage and detachable IEC power cord

Viella Turntable Belt Drive:
Stainless steel weighted and polished drive-belt pulley.
Precision made rubber belt.

Viella 12” tonearm


BEARING: Dual-pivot design replaces the standard gimbaled bearing. Vertical bearing, similar to technique used in the rotor heads of helicopters, uses two 0.5mm thick “spring steel wires”, allowing fine azimuth adjustment while eliminating play. Horizontal axle is hardened tool steel, precision ground to a backlash-free fit with a needle roller bearing. It is extremely precise, maintenance free, and never requiring adjustment.

ARMWAND: Aircraft quality, anodized aluminum tube for resonance control, 12 gram effective mass

COUNTERWEIGHT: Two piece with Teflon decoupled sleeve

COPPER INTERNAL WIRING: Multiple gauges of high quality copper

MAGNETIC ANTI-SKATING: decoupled via a ring magnet and 2 bar magnets. Magnetic fields isolated in our patented bearing housing.

VTA: precision locking system allowing easy adjustment during play.


www.amg-turntables.com

A special thanks to Chase Madrid for bringing this to my attention.

Herman Miller Thanks Fellow Design Lovers With 10 Free Fun Wallpaper Downloads.

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In celebration of the start of the 2012 NeoCon design exposition and conference, Herman Miller been taking a Community Pulse — a series of thought-provoking questions on work, life, and all the spaces in-between. (Take the survey, here.)

As their thank-you for taking part, they're offering 10 free downloads to spruce up your desktop, iPhone, and iPad, all inspired by the different ways Herman Miller defines “community.”











Download them here.

Small Scale Models of Decaying Homes Built and Photographed by Ofra Lapid.

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Broken houses is a series of images of dilapidated and abandoned buildings, destroyed by weather, decay and neglect. Artist Ofra Lapid found photos of these homes and buildings on the web while pursuing an amateur photographer from North Dakota (name not disclosed) who obsessively documents the decaying process of these houses- not unlike these wonderful artists who are also obsessed with decaying and abandonded homes. Ofra then built small scale models of these and photographed them again, omitting the backgrounds and placing them on grey fields.

Ofra at work in her studio:

Model of one of her Broken Assembled Houses (as she calls them) prior to being photographed::




The result is the following series of digital pigment prints (cropped for this blog post) sized 30×36 cm (16”x18”):




















Ofra describes her work as follows:
"The point of departure for my photographic works is in images found on the Internet. I browse around the virtual space in search of raw material. The main subjects of my research are domestic environments and various architectural structures, as well as routine cityscapes. The images at which I point are those of the unusual, bizarre, fantastic, catastrophic, tragic, poetic, funny, surreal; ones which were free to download. The use of web-based images gives me the freedom to appropriate both image and context, namely the story behind it, the subject matter. I enjoy manipulating the original photograph: erase; cut, copy, and paste; print; create crafty models; build something broken; create an illusion; change the meaning; emphasize something from the past (of no obvious relevance); photograph a photograph; enlarge something that is very small; meet new people; discover remote parts of the world; be in many places at once; humanize the computer; settle conflicts. Art for me is a good way to resolve the relentless conflicts existing in everyday life. It is a way to communicate, respond, and negotiate every thought, every action, every lasting desire."

Ofra Lapid