Alcohol and Drugs History Society

Ale and advertising in late Victorian and Edwardian England (article)

Jonathan Reinarz, "Promoting the Pint: Ale and Advertising in late Victorian and Edwardian England," Social History of Alcohol and Drugs 22/1 (Fall 2007): 26-44.

Absolut vodka redraws the border between Mexico and the USA

In a controversial advertising campaign in Mexico, the vodka maker Absolut presented the border between Mexico and the USA as it has existed in the 1830s when California, Texas, and the other southwestern states were part of Mexico. Some people in the USA have called for a boycott of the Swedish vodka. For more, see here.

Controversy over Brazil's restrictions on alcohol sales and advertising

Big retail chains and others are fighting restrictions in Brazil on alcohol sales and advertising. The Brazilian government temporarily banned alcohol sales along federal highways and has proposed a ban on alcohol ads on daytime TV and radio. Some people compare the effort by the Brazilian government with the strict anti-tobacco legislation enacted in 1999 at a time when few other governments pursued similar legislation. For more, see here.

Beer brands confusing in USA

In Forbes, Jack Trout complains that the big American brewers ignore a basic rule of marketing by creating a profusion of brands with similar names. He adds that they may be sensible in keeping the name of the ultimate owner off the beers that they brew for the craft market. For instance, most people don't know that Blue Moon is owned by Molson Coors. For more, see here.

Beer in postsocialist Georgia (article)

Paul Manning and Ann Uplisashvili, "'Our Beer': Ethnographic Brands in Postsocialist Georgia," American Anthropologist 109/4 (December 2007): 626-641.

Beer advertising: the rise of digital formats?

USA Today, 17 October 2007, discusses advertising by Anheuser-Busch and its competitors Miller and Coors (these two likely to be combined by mid-2008, pending decision by regulators). Currently Anheuser-Busch spend $511 million on advertising (apparently this is for the USA), while Miller and Coors combined spend $422 million. The main point of the article is the likelihood of a shift from TV advertising (now about 75% of beer advertising) to digital formats. Men aged 25-34 are less likely to watch TV and more likely to use digital devices than the general population and such men are a prime audience for beer advertising.

Middle schoolers to take on beer ads

As a lawyer, Mary Easley squared off with bad guys she sent to jail. As North Carolina's first lady, she is picking a fight with Captain Morgan and a buxom robot with a keg of Heineken stashed in her chest.

Easley intends to keep young people from drinking by pummeling the alcohol icons with straight talk. In a program she announced Wednesday, North Carolina teachers will tell middle schoolers that beer brewers are lying to them.

Find the full story here.

Liquor advertising on the web

According to the New York Times, 22 June 2007, liquor advertising has moved from the print media and TV to the web. For more, see here.

Irish cider cutting into bitter sales

Sales of the heavily advertised cider produced by the Irish company Magners is cutting into the sales of bitter beer in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Cider is particularly popular as an at home beverage drunk over ice and among women. For more, see here. Sold in the Republic of Ireland under the name Bulmers, the Irish cider is called Magners elsewhere because a British cider Bulmers has a trade mark for its name in Britain.

Africans in 18th cent. English tobacco advertising (article)

Catherine Molineux, "Pleasures of the Smoke: 'Black Virginians' in Georgian London's Tobacco Shops," William and Mary Quarterly 64/2 (Apriol 2007): 327-376. Richly illustsrated.

'Our product doesn't have any cocaine in it,' says company spokesperson

An energy drink called Cocaine has been from pulled from stores across the U.S. amid concerns about its name, the company that produces it said Monday.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Just sparkling juice, says distributor

A bubbly, non-alcoholic children's drink for sale in Alberta liquor stores has upset Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

The CBC reports.

Cigarette advertising in Egypt, 1919-1939 (article)

Relli Shechter, "Reading Advertisements in a Colonial/Development Context: Cigarette Advertising and Identity Politics in Egypt, c1919-1939," Journal of Social History 39/2 (2005): 483-503.

'It's part of our lifestyle now,' says LCBO manager

A feature story in Saturday's Globe and Mail examines Canada's alcohol dependency:

In 2005, Canadians downed the equivalent of 7.9 litres of pure alcohol for every drinker and teetotaller over age 15. And many of us drink often -- consuming about 30 per cent more than the world average.

The social cost of our new lifestyle is staggering: $14.6 billion in 2002, and no doubt more in the years since. The health care bill alone is $3.3 billion -- higher than the price tag to treat cancer. We spent 1.6 million days in the hospital because of illnesses and accidents caused by people under the influence of alcohol.

For the first time, more people died from liver cirrhosis -- regarded as a benchmark of a country's problem drinking -- than on the roads in drunken car crashes.

Find the full story here.

Brew Blog

Find a brewery blog here.  The 'Brew' site, published by the Miller Brewing Company, "aims to give beer people daily analysis, commentary and some original reporting on the current state of the alcohol-beverage industry." (Thanks to Dave Trippel for the link). 

Swedish government to sell Absolut vodka

The Swedish government has decided to sell Absolut vodka and its parent company. The heavily advertised brand of vodka is one of the best known alcoholic drink brands. For more, see here.

Grocers want wine tastings, but sobriety advocates find idea hard to swallow

Try some wine? Not in our grocery stores, sobriety advocates say. A bill to create a wine and beer tasting pilot program in 30 Washington grocery stores may send children the wrong message about alcohol, lobbyists for substance abuse prevention said last week.

MSNBC reports.

French wine makers uncork warmer image

French wine makers are beginning to claw back their dominance of the global wine market after years of problems in responding to innovation from the New World.

A series of reforms in the way wine is produced in France, which include labelling wines by grape variety as well as by region, appear to have boosted the beleaguered industry.

Read more here.

Indian film star criticized for liquor ads

Indian film star, Mohanial, has been criticized for appearing in liquor ads in the southern state of Kerala which has the highest per capita alcohol consumption in the country. Although advertising alcoholic drinks is illegal in India, the law is often skirted. For more, see here.

Nicogel

A new hand gel is starting to appear on drug-store shelves promising more than just an end to germs or dry skin -- this one claims to satisfy users' tobacco cravings for up to four hours.

Reuters reports.

Kicking an addiction, with real people

Every time they turn around, smokers are being lectured by nonsmokers about health risks and costs to society, but many of them keep smoking anyway, so pharmaceuticals and anti-smoking groups are turning to smokers and ex-smokers themselves to make the point.

The IHT reports.

Study criticizes anti-smoking ads

An Oregon State University study suggests that anti-smoking ads by the tobacco industry targeted at youths and their parents do not work and might actually encourage some teens to smoke.

The Seattle Times reports.

BeerBooks.com DVDs on sale

BeerBooks.com lists as on sale (November 17, 2006) a number of DVDs including "Brewed in America," "Make Mine a Pint: The History of Beer" (three archival films made for Whitbread in 1950), "Pabst Mansion," and "Vintage TV Beer Commercials of the 1950s & 60s." For more, see here.

This is your brain on pot

A British TV advertisement warning young people of the damage cannabis can do to the brain is to be screened as part of a drugs awareness campaign.  The BBC reports.

TV ad aims to stop young drinkers

Hard-hitting TV adverts showing the dangers people face from drinking to excess are to be screened in the UK.  The BBC reports.

More prime-time shows go for a drink

Whether characters are bellying up to Joe's Emerald City Bar in Grey's Anatomy or swigging a martini at MacLaren's on How I Met Your Mother, booze is getting a bottle full of free exposure on prime-time TV this fall.

Cocktails have replaced coffee as pop culture's elixir of choice, with liquor making cameo appearances in shows including CBS' Two and a Half Men, Fox's Happy Hour and the pilot of ABC's Brothers and Sisters.

"The new programs show individuals or small groups drinking as part of the cocktail culture that had its renaissance in films like Swingers and rediscovery of Rat Pack cool," says John Rash, a senior vice president of media for ad agency Campbell Mithun, Minneapolis.

"They're saying, in effect, that a cocktail after work is still an accepted part of the socially sanctioned American experience."

But the Parents Television Council says that such fare is too prevalent during early hours when kids tune in.

USA Today reports.

The West gets ready to slake Russia's thirst

A lucrative market for beer and drinks is opening up in Russia as consumers lurch towards prosperity. The Independent reports.

Drinking for two? Then this Brazil near beer's for you

A Brazilian brewery is using pregnant models in a series of magazine advertisements that bring new meaning to the term "beer belly." Although the scantily clad women pictured in the attention-grabbing campaign are holding non-alcoholic beer, some critics claim the easily misinterpreted images cross the line.

The Regina Leader-Post reports.

'These are beers to match Asian lifestyle and Asian food'

What drink goes well with Malaysian beef rendang, mini octopus and Thai vermicelli salad? How about an ice-cold Traveller's Wheat beer, spiced with tamarind, ginger and a pinch of lemongrass and Chinese orange peel? The surprisingly refreshing brew is the star of a trio of craft beers recently introduced by Archipelago Brewing Co. and brewed specifically to complement the unique flavors of Southeast Asian cuisine. Read more.

advertising beer in England (article)

Ken Thomas, ""Advertising the Product," Journal of the Brewery History Society 62 (1990): 13-15.

breweriana

A small industry serves beer memorabilia collectors. For instance, see the American Breweriana Association which publishes the American Breweriana Journal: the Magazine of Brewing History and Advertising; and the National Association Breweriana Advertising [sic] which publishes the Breweriana Collector. These and other organizations hold meetings, sponsor websites, organize tours, etc.

alcohol and tobacco marketing in the USA (book)

Pamela E. Pennock, Advertising Sin and Sickness: The Politics of Alcohol and Tobacco Marketing, 1950-1990 (DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, forthcoming 2007).  Part of series, "Drugs and Alcohol: Contested Histories."

advertising Scotch whiskies (book)

John Hughes, Still Going Strong: A History of Scotch Whisky Advertising (Stroud: Tempus Publishing, 2005). Also published without the word Scotch in the title.

US Cigarette Advertisements, 1930-1953 (article)

Gardner, Martha N., and Allan M. Brandt. "The Physician in US Cigarette Advertisements, 1930-1953." American Journal of Public Health 96, no. 2 (2006): 222-232.

Beer marketing changes in US

AP Business Writer Emily Fredrix reports on the state of the American beer market as she summarize recent decisions of Miller Beer.

With beer sales falling flat across the industry, brewers are diversifying their reach, especially those in the domestic premium market. Light beer now takes about 49 percent of the market and is considered the standard beer, according to the trade newsletter Beer Marketer's Insights. So domestic premium brands like Miller Genuine Draft, Budweiser and Coors Banquet are trying to grow their roughly 16 percent stake in a stagnant market, according to a study in a recent issue of the newsletter.

beer in post-apartheid South African advertising (dissertation)

Sarah Britten, "One Nation, One Beer: The Mythology of the New South Africa in Advertising" (Ph.D. dissertation, University of Witwatersrand, 2005).

American beer advertising memorabilia (book)

Herbert A. and Helen I. Haydock, Beer Advertising Memorabilia, vol. 2 (Turner, 2003). This is a reorganized and updated version of a 1997 book by the Haydocks. According to BeerBooks.com (Cleveland, Ohio) their personal collection was purchased by the Oldenberg Brewery, Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, for its American Museum of Brewing History and then resold to Miller Brewing which moved the collection to Milwaukee. The table of contents of the 2003 book follows.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

— Dedication
— Acknowledgements
— Introduction
— About The Authors
— Breweries in USA
— Tied Houses
— How To Advertise Beer
— Supporting the War Effort
— Beer Containers
— Beer In Wood
— Beer Growlers
— Beer Bottles
— Beer Cans
— Picnic Time
— Beer Labels
— Drinking Vessels
— Tap Markers and Knobs
— Children
— Brewery Beauties
— Merry Xmas
— Bock Beer
— Beer Trucks
— Sports & Beer
— German Memorabilia
— Craft Beer Memorabilia
— Index

Kingfisher Airlines

Vijay Mallya, billionaire liquor baron, chairman of United Breweries and purveyor of Kingfisher beer, is not cut from the same humble, homespun cloth of most Indian businessmen. Known for his ostentatious lifestyle — opulent homes, personal jets, racehorses, yachts and legendary parties — Mallya delights in shattering traditional attitudes.

So, when he couldn't advertise his alcohol in India, he decided — in the tradition of Virgin’s Sir Richard Branson — to wed his lifestyle with his brand by putting his brand on the side of an airline.  The Sunday Times of London reports.

Lifestyle drugs

If you flip on the television, you’ll learn from myriad ads that you can’t sleep, your cholesterol is out of whack, your sex life is suffering and your allergies are keeping you from enjoying life. Oh yeah, and that you’re way too depressed to deal with any of it.

But don’t fear. There’s Lunesta and Ambien for sleep; Crestor and Zocor for cholesterol; Cialis and Viagra for erectile dysfunction; Claritin and Zyrtec for allergies; and Zoloft and Paxil for depression. Sure, there are some side effects (nausea, dizziness, drowsiness and four-hour erections), so "ask your doctor if this drug is right for you."

It’s called direct-to-consumer advertising, and pharmaceutical companies are counting on television viewers to take the bait, remember the drug name and call their doctors.

The Columbus Dispatch reports.

The beer biz loosens the rules on ads

If you own a TV set, you've probably seen the ad where a junior exec tells his boss in the elevator that he decided to boost office morale by hiding Bud Lights around the office.

When they get off the elevator, the place looks like it's been sacked by Visigoths. In the last scene, the boss finds a bottle and is flattened by a flying tackle.

It's good, rowdy fun. But there's something else cool about it: Before this past January it might not have been made, because it might not have met Beer Institute advertising guidelines.

New York Daily News reports.

Police put lid on students' free beer

A beer giveaway didn't last long before police in Guelph, Ontario city moved in.

A truck filled with more than 68,000 cans of beer had been parked Thursday on a street close to an apartment building occupied mostly by University of Guelph students. Promoters were pulling free six-packs from the truck and handing them to students, who had “lined up four abreast,” said Constable Ken Rodd.

The beer was part of a promotion put on for Labatt Brewing Co.'s Kokanee brand. They gave away 448 six-packs to eager students before police were called.

The Globe and Mail reports.

'Party pills'

The Drug Foundation yesterday called for a halt to all advertising of party pills, claiming advertising social drugs contributed to an increase in New Zealand's drug-related problems.

The New Zealand Herald reports.

'We didn't realize it was the image of a Hindu goddess,' says Brown-Forman's vice president of corporate communications

Alarmed by the protest mail that had begun pouring over its telephone lines and into its e-mailboxes, the makers of a popular brand of whiskey-flavored liqueur earlier this week removed an offending window display in an Athens, Greece, bar carrying the image of Goddess Durga sitting on a tiger holding bottles of the beverage in all her eight hands.

Indiawest Online reports.

Beer ad actor busted

A Toronto actor who portrays the fanatical Scot in Alexander Keith's beer commercials has been charged with child pornography offences. 

Canoe reports.

'In the traditional pub fight in the past, they would have been holding their partners back...'

'...Now they are mirroring the behavior of males," says Chris Allison, the head of licensing issues for Britain's Association of Chief Police Officers.  British women are leading a rise in drinking among young women across the industrial world -- a trend that is troubling public-health leaders and spurring sales for the alcoholic beverage industry.

Read more.

Blasphemy

The Calgary Herald reports that the brewers of Guinness will test a new low-alcohol version of Guinness next month in an effort to reverse a slide in sales of its most popular beer. Eighty bars in the Irish city of Limerick will start selling a "Mid-Strength" version of the black stout with an alcohol level of 2.8 per cent on March 9.

Regular Guinness, praised by James Joyce as "the frothy freshener," is 4.2 per cent alcohol. "If Mid-Strength is successful, we'll roll it out across the country," said Jean Doyle, a Dublin-based spokesman for Guinness. This is the second attempt by the world's largest liquor maker to make Guinness more attractive to beer drinkers, who increasingly favour lager. In 1979, Diageo sold a lighter version of the beer with the slogan "They said it couldn't be done." The product was withdrawn two years later.

Commercials for junk food and booze have reached a watershed

It used to be simple. Companies came up with a product and advertised it. Consumers, liking the look of it, bought it and, well, consumed it. That, however, was then. These days, how companies market goods, and to whom is highly contentious - especially if they're selling alcohol and junk food.

The Independent reports.

Pink whiskey for women

A strawberry-flavored whiskey developed with women in mind has gotten rave reviews from whiskey experts. Strawberry Kiss whiskey liqueur will soon go on sale in Scotland. Surprisingly, the pink-colored beverage has has received top rating from traditional whiskey experts, The Scotsman reported.

Glenmorangie's Master Distiller and bosses from the Whisky Shop are among more than 40 experts who have tasted the whiskey and proclaimed it excellent, the newspaper said. The drink was concocted by a pair of Edinburgh businessmen who spent eight months in a home kitchen perfecting the secret recipe.

Read more.

And it wasn't even a real coffee

Dunkin' Donuts new ad campaign is based on true customer stories that reveal the great lengths people will go to for Dunkin' Donuts coffee. Dracut, Massachusetts resident Lyn Misserville, for example, drove her 2005 Toyota Corolla five miles on a flat tire to a Dunkin' Donuts where she picked up a medium regular iced coffee with extra sugar before calling for help.

Read more.

I'm prepared to believe what the beer doctor tells me

London's Sun Online reports that a strong lager which promises less of a hangover is to go on sale in British supermarkets. The makers of Lady Bird Bio Beer also claim it PROTECTS the liver and cuts cholesterol. The brew — five per cent strong, the same as Stella Artois — contains extracts of aloe vera and herbs thought to have medicinal qualities. It has been a big hit in India since its launch there last summer. Creator Dr Srinivasa Amarnath claims that drinking the beer over a long period can also help prevent ulcers and gastric trouble.

Complete ban on alcohol advertising in Thailand

Thailand's public health ministry has rejected a recommendation to limit the hours for advertising alcohol on television.  Instead, it will ban all advertising for alcoholic drinks, all the time, in all media. The laws are expected to be announced in March.

The Bankok Post reports.

New Zealand debates total ban on alcohol advertising on radio and TV and on sports sponsorship

A review by New Zealand's government of alcohol promotion regulations may lead to a crackdown on television advertising and sports sponsorship. Associate Health Minister Damien O'Connor said yesterday that the move was a result of mounting anxiety about increased youth drinking. Concerns about whether the broadcasting and alcohol industries should be left to self-regulate television and radio advertising are also fuelling the rethink, with Mr O'Connor appearing to signal that the Government wants greater control.

Read more at the New Zealand Herald.

In its ongoing attempt at world domination...

Movies will soon be the latest non-caffeinated addition to the menu at Starbucks. The coffee giant revealed Thursday its first film promotion partnership. The Seattle-based Starbucks, which operates coffee shop chains worldwide, has signed a deal with Canadian film studio Lion's Gate Entertainment to jointly market and distribute the upcoming drama Akeelah and the Bee. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but an earlier report in the Wall Street Journal said that the coffee chain would promote the movie in exchange for an undisclosed share of the subsequent box office proceeds.

The CBC reports.

Adverts 'increase youth drinking'

Young people who are exposed to advertisements for alcohol are likely to drink more, a US study suggests. The BBC reports.

Anti-drink campaign + raunchy poster = angry women officers

A raunchy poster aimed at reducing alcohol-related crime has been removed from police stations in County Durham because it offended women officers. The poster features a blonde woman in a suggestive pose and the words "Hi boys! I'd rather have a laugh with you than see you in stitches." The message aims to discourage binge drinking among 18 to 24-year-old men. But the campaign, piloted in Lancashire, sparked claims from female officers that it degraded women.

The BBC reports.

Blue Suede Beans

Elvis Presley Enterprises green-lighted four limited-edition holiday coffees so consumers can brew a cup of the King. The coffees are called Santa Baby, Blue Christmas, Love Me Tender and Silent Night, which is the decaf version. An official with Elvis Presley Enterprises said Presley was a big coffee drinker and would have been thrilled with the deal. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

Vintage wine and other ghastly clichés

Bordeaux has, to its chagrin, learnt that it must sell itself to survive. Its marketing involves culture clashes with representatives of a new wine order who are not impressed by its adherence to the classification of Médoc chateaux made precisely 150 years ago. An English grandee on that peninsula was entertaining a cosmopolitan group of négociants, business people, diplomats...and wine writers. The Times reports.

On Advertising: Drinkers get a warning in England

As of Thursday, pubs across England and Wales will no longer have to shut their doors at 11 p.m. Assuming that they have received the proper license, they will be able to stay open as long as they want.

While they are celebrating down at the King's Arms, the Coach & Horses, the Duke of York and many of the other 80,000 or so pubs, some Britons are not so happy. The change in the law, which goes into effect Thursday, comes amid rising concern about binge drinking and alcohol-related violence, which have turned some town centers into no-go zones for the noninebriated on Friday and Saturday nights.

In an effort to address those fears, the government has announced a £2.5 million, or $4.3 million, campaign to publicize new measures to crack down on drunken misbehavior. It includes posters that are being placed in night-life districts of London and other cities starting Monday.

The IHT reports.

What better way to reward a group of athletes?

A major Czech brewery has offered 160 litres of beer, the average yearly consumption of each citizen, to each member of the Czech national football squad irrespective of whether the team beats Norway to qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

"We want to recognise the achievements of the team in one of the most difficult qualifying groups for the World Cup," said a brewery spokesman. "The offer is equivalent to a year's supply of beer," he added.

Players will only be able to take up the offer after the second leg of the play-off match against Norway in Prague on November 16, he added. The first leg is in Norway on Saturday.

The Australian reports.

'Jesus Juice'

The Home Town Channel (KHBS/KHOG) reports that in the Michael Jackson case, one of the phrases that will have a life long after the trial ends will be "Jesus Juice" -- the name Jackson's accusers say he had for wine that he allegedly served his young guests.

Now, a Los Angeles couple is trying to market a wine called "Jesus Juice" and the label has a Jackson-like figure who appears to be impaled. The couple filed to get a trademark for the name in January of last year. The application is still pending -- as is a plan to get the wine to market. The Smoking Gun Web site said the couple is looking for someone to either produce wine under the label, or buy the trademark rights from them.

'I'll have a Seriously Bad Elf and an order of wings, please'

Connecticut residents will be able to toast to their health this holiday season with a bottle of Seriously Bad Elf. The state Department of Consumer Protection announced Tuesday it would approve the sale of Seriously Bad Elf ale in Connecticut despite earlier concerns that the beer’s label might appeal to children. The department determined that although state regulations bar alcohol advertising with images that might entice kids, including images associated with Santa Claus, the regulations do not apply to beer labels. The Boston Herald reports.

Flintstones Tobacco Ad

When The Flintstones first went on the air in the early 1960's the show was sponsored by a well known tobacco company. Here is one of those commercials.

Russia cracks down on beer ads

It's a warm September evening, school is out, and scores of kids hanging around Moscow's Tanganka Square have loaded up with pints of beer. They stand around in mixed groups of boys and girls, laughing, talking, and swigging.

"I don't drink beer to get drunk, just to relax," says Yevgeny Mirkin, who says he's 16. "It's just something to do with friends."

Scenes like this, routine on the streets of Russian cities, prompted the State Duma to unanimously pass a sweeping ban on TV beer advertising, except late at night, which came into effect this month. Some parliamentarians are also pressing for curbs on public beer drinking, which could be tacked onto sweeping security measures being prepared in the wake of a series of devastating terrorist attacks that killed almost 450 Russians in the past month.

Read more at The Seoul Times (19 Oct 2005).

Beer and Canadian Identity (Articloe)

Robert M. McGregor, "I am Canadian: National Identity in Beer Commercials," Journal of Popular Culture 37/2 (2003): 276-286.

Tobacco giants take to subliminal style messages after cigarette advertising is banned in England

Picture the scene: You walk into a chic bar where the clientele is young and the drinks reassuringly expensive; you note the stylish combinations of red and white furniture, the impressive attention to detail that goes into everything from the cushions to the ashtrays. Suddenly, inexplicably, you urgently want to smoke a Marlboro cigarette.

It sounds the stuff of bad science fiction, but Philip Morris, the manufacturer of Marlboro, is such a believer in 'experiential' marketing - where furniture and design are used to subtly convey a brand's strengths - it has created a crack team to transform the insides of Britain's upmarket bars and music events, in an attempt to boost its profits.

As a smoking ban in England nears and tobacco advertising has been banned, cigarette companies have had to find other ways to sell their products. The Observer reports.

The great vodka row

The St. Petersburg Times reports (9 September 2005) that a notorious row in the city's vodka industry may soon reach the courts. St. Petersburg-based alcoholic drinks producer Liviz went into counter offensive this week, rebutting a smear campaign against the firm’s vodka, which a newly formed public organization has alleged to be poisonous for consumers. Find the full story here.

Today's hurricane relief is brought to you by the following sponsors...

The Associated Press reports (2 September 2005) that beer giant Anheuser-Busch says it has begun supplying cans of fresh drinking water to Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana. It has pledged two and a-half million cans a week as long as necessary. To supply the much-needed water, it is converting brewery operations in Houston and Cartersville, Georgia. Like other large corporations, it has pledged a million dollars to the American Red Cross for hurricane relief. The maker of Budweiser and Michelob says it will also make its large truck fleet, based at 12 domestic breweries, available to help the Red Cross ship emergency supplies such as generators, food and clothing.

Breweries large and small respond to flat market...with caffeine beer

The Miami Herald reports (28 August 2005) that a couple of breweries, one of them large and one of them small, made announcements recently that perfectly illustrate the state of the American beer business. Anheuser-Busch, the brewery that churns out more than 3 billion gallons of what they insist is beer, unveiled Tilt, a raspberry-flavored malt beverage with caffeine. Tilt is designed for a target audience, ages 21 to 27, transitioning from the end of their workday to their night out. In the past year, Anheuser-Busch has also issued something called B-to-the-E, which features berries and caffeine with a ginseng kicker, and Budweiser Select. Of Bud Select, industry magazine Modern Brewery Age said, "If no-aftertaste, low cal, low carb is the future of beer, then it is a bleak future, indeed.'' Read more here.

Starbucks' gay coffee cups not exactly a hit among Bible group

The Gay Financial Network reports (22 August 2005) that Starbuck’s promotional program called “The Way I See It” – a collection of thoughts provided by notable figures appearing on the company’s coffee cups – has raised the hackles of one of the country’s most strident anti-gay, anti-women’s rights groups in the country. The Concerned Women of America, a “traditional family values” organization run by Beverly LaHaye, wife of fundamentalist preacher Rev. Tim Lahaye, a Christian broadcaster, has targeted Starbucks for promoting “homosexual values” by including quotes from gay individuals on their coffee cups, and for the company’s support of a San Diego gay pride event. Find the full story here.

New ads to tackle Britain's binge drinking culture

The Observer reports (14 August 2005) that binge drinkers will be targeted by a government advertising campaign attempting to shame them out of overindulging when pub opening hours are extended this autumn. The £5 million campaign will portray drunk behaviour as socially unacceptable and embarrassing, capitalising on disgust at images of incoherent revellers lying in gutters and vomiting in the streets. It follows research suggesting one of the reasons Britain does not have a relaxed, Mediterranean-style 'cafe culture' of drinking is because there is little stigma now attached to being drunk in public. Read more here.

Tobacco groups advertise more but sell less

The Financial Times reports (9 August 2005) that the five biggest tobacco companies spent $15.2bn on US advertising and promotion of cigarettes in 2003, an increase of more than 20 per cent from a year earlier and the highest figure ever reported to the Federal Trade Commission. A report issued by the Washington regulator said the five tobacco giants nevertheless sold 19.8bn fewer cigarettes in 2003, a 5 per cent decline in sales despite the advertising and marketing push.

Vodka Goes Beyond Plain Vanilla

The New York Times reports (16 June 2005) that Absolut vodka is introducing an elaborate and extensive campaign to promote its flavored varieties, exhorting drinkers to "Find your flavor." Find the full story here.

Grandpa's beer gets a brand new buzz

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports (11 June 2005) on "retro beers," brands that might bring to mind old men in ribbed undershirts, and which are now finding a new audience with the young. It worked for Pabst Blue Ribbon and now others are playing the same nostalgic chords. Find the full story here.

Liquor makers offering luxury by the glassful

The Washington Post reports (12 June 2005) on the liquor industry's new "mentoring" events. Using carefully scripted on-premise marketing as the linchpin of hundred-million-dollar ad campaigns, the $15 billion-a-year liquor industry is pushing the concept of affordable luxury into the hands of people in their twenties and thirties as they lean over bars to order drinks. The idea is to get them to order not just a martini, but a Grey Goose vodka martini. To not just do shots of tequila, but to sip Jose Cuervo Reserva. To not order Scotch on the rocks, but Johnnie Walker Gold. Find the full story here.

Kenya to outlaw alcohol adverts

BBC News reports (10 June 2005) that the Kenyan government says it will soon ban alcohol and tobacco advertisements from television and billboards. Government spokesman Alfred Mutua said the ban was intended to protect children from the harmful effects of alcohol consumption. Tobacco adverts are also set to be banned. In February, tobacco and liquor adverts were outlawed near schools. Last month, the government said it would ban smoking in public places and raise taxes on cigarettes. Find the full story here.

Beer and wine do make a heady mix

The Australian reports (30 May 2005) that if Lion Nathan chief executive officer Robert Murray had been in charge of Foster's, he would not have bought Southcorp. He believes that while the beer and spirits business have a close correlation, wine is a completely different market and historically mass-marketing wine companies have not produced good returns on the capital employed. Find the full story here.

The names of some top breweries may surprise you

The Fontana Herald News reports (26 May 2005) on the state of the beer industry in the United States. Find the full story here.

Ganesha label on beer bottle

Rediff.com reports (19 May 2005) that an Indian-American law student, offended by the depiction of Hindu god Ganesha on a bottle of beer in the US, is suing the beer company for 'hurting the sentiments of Hindus worldwide'. Though Lost Coast Brewery has said it will withdraw the label, Brij Dhir, a Golden Gate University law student and a licensed attorney in Mumbai, said he is seeking damages worth $ 1 billion from the company. Dhir, who hails from Brentwood, said the company's Indica India Pale Ale label showed Ganesh holding a beer in one of his arms and another in his trunk. "How can you show a god in such a way?" Dhir asked. Find the full story here.

Scotch Whiskey Marketing after 1975 (Article)

S.R.H. Jones, "Brand Building and Structural Change in the Scotch Whisky Industry since 1975," Business History 45/3 (2003): 72-89.

Miller pushing low-end beer

The St Louis Business Journal reports (13 May 2005) that Miller Brewing Co. wants to build market share in the subpremium beer market, according to a media report. For the first time in a decade, it plans to use television ads to push Milwaukee's Best and Miller High Life, the report said. Find the full story here.

Legislators seek ban on flavoured cigarettes

The Canadian Press reports (11 May 2005) from Albany, New York on the flavoured cigarettes debate. They're called Winter Warm Toffee, Kauai Kolada, and Twista Chill, but the flavoured cigarettes are leaving a bad taste in the mouths of lawmakers who say they should be banned because they target young people. Anti-smoking groups have charged that tobacco companies, particularly Reynolds American Inc., are luring teenagers into the smoking habit by offering flavoured cigarettes and advertising them in magazines with heavy adolescent readership, like Rolling Stone, Glamour and Elle. Find the full story here.

The National Brewing Library at Oxford Brookes University

The website of the National Brewing Library at Oxford Brookes University, UK, can be found here. The National Brewing Library was officialy opened on 10 December 2002. It comprises approximately 4,500 volumes relating to brewing, distilling, beer, whisky and other alcoholic beverages, and dependent trades, mainly in the English language. The collection aims to be the primary and most comprehensive source of information in the UK, on the scientific, technological, historical and social aspects of the above.

Publishers want to cork wine mag

The Globe and Mail reports (3 May 2005) that magazine publishers are calling for the Liquor Control Board of Ontario to get out of the publishing industry. The Canadian Magazine Publishers Association submitted a document to the Ontario Beverage Alcohol System Review in March saying the LCBO's Food & Drink magazine unfairly competes with private publishers. Find the full story here.

Alcohol advertising during college games a burning issue

Pittsburgh's Post-Gazette reports (4 April 2005) on the problems associated with alcohol advertising and beer consumption at college games. Find the full story here.

Alcohol advertising restrictions

The Warsaw Business Journal reports (4 April 2005) that with the exception of beer, the advertisement and promotion of alcohol in Poland is prohibited. However, the reality, for better or worse, is not so clear. As with many laws, this prohibition is followed by a long list of exceptions. Find the full story here.

Booze ads on TV - not such a big deal

Business Week Online reports (1 March 2005) that over 600 local TV stations in the US last year carried booze ads. The article goes on to comment, however, that as long as the liquor companies mind standards and stay heavy on the 'drink responsibly' messages, it doesn't seem like the big deal it once was to see liquor advertising on TV. Find the full story here.

Truth in Adverstising

An American website with a collection of vintage cigarette advertisements from the 1940s and 1950s can be found here.

Addictive Advertising (Book)

Kirven Blount, What's Your Poison?: Addictive Advertising of the '40s-'60s (Portland, Oregon: Garsington, 2005).  Tobacco and alcohol.

Bud Light Accused of Trivializing Alcoholism in New Ad

CSPI Newsroom reports (7 April 2005) that a new ad for Bud Light beer depicts men joking about lies they've told to cover up their daytime drinking, and two watchdog groups say the Federal Trade Commission should crack down and ask Anheuser-Busch to pull the ad. In a letter to FTC enforcement official Janet Evans, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD) say the ad irresponsibly makes light of alcoholic behavior. Find the full story here.

Beer and the American flag just don't go together: prohibition against advertising depicting the American flag

The Newport News-Times reports (25 March 2005) that Rogue Ales, which operates its brewery in South Beach, received a government citation recently ordering the removal of all point-of-sale merchandise that includes a depiction of the American flag. Find the full story here.

Alcohol Manufacturers To Fight Ban on Ads

The St. Petersburg Times reports (11 March 2005) that top alcohol manufacturers in St. Petersburg said they will lobby the government to limit the advertising ban imposed on all liquor ads in printed and television media. Find the full story here.

Tobacco companies have their ways despite efforts to tame them

The New Nation, Bangladesh's Independent News Source, reports (10 March 2005) from Dhaka that while India's government has moved to ban smoking in public places and restrict advertisements that promote smoking, the tobacco companies are finding ways to dodge the restrictions. Find the full story here.

More and more Africans taking up smoking

BBC News reports (18 March 2005) that with tobacco advertising banned in many Western countries, cigarette manufacturers are increasingly targeting countries in Africa. And more and more Africans are taking up the habit. African countries are experiencing the highest increase in the rate of tobacco use among developing countries. Find the full story here.

Ad alleging drug sales at highschool 'unfair'

The Chicago Sun-Times reports (22 March 2005) that a Park Ridge parent who alleged in a newspaper ad that students can buy heroin and crystal meth at Maine South High School has prompted an uproar at the high-achieving northwest suburban school. Find the full story here.

What's the buzz on energy drinks?: they're loaded with sugar, caffeine, and controversy

The Globe and Mail reports (21 March 2005) from Toronto that Cott Corp. is waving a red flag in front of Austria's Red Bull GmbH, trying to grab a piece of Canada's emerging energy drink market - a niche industry with enormous growth potential, observers say. Thanks to their ridiculous levels of sugar and caffeine, though, the energy drinks also pose serious health risks, particularly to children or pregnant women. A number of European countries have gone so far as to ban them entirely. Find the full story here.

Candy-flavored cigars worry advocates

The Tallahassee Democrat reports (11 March 2005) on the new trend in candy-flavoured cigars. Adult flavours, such as rum, bourbon, and anisette, have been around for years, but new flavours, cinnamon, strawberry, even "icy mint" blunts, have been popping up lately. They're also machine-made cigars, available for $2-3 a pack, not premium cigars that each could go for $4-7, or higher. The marketing people at the companies who make them are tight-lipped about their sales strategy, refusing to say which segment they're aiming for and how they're selling. They're quick to add they don't advertise any of the products. But the American Legacy Foundation, an anti-smoking concern funded by the states' multibillion-dollar settlement with the tobacco industry, is concerned. Find the full story here.

Steroids? Alcohol is real problem

The San Francisco Chronicle reports (17 March 2005) that if the motive for the recent steroids hearing in Washington is about protecting America's kids from the harmful influence of sports leagues that care only about boosti