While sometimes the world feels as if it’s becoming more homogeneous, there are still differences that make countries, cities, and even neighbourhoods stand out from each other, with a flavour all their own.
And this way something that Global Vodka brand Absolut wanted to tap into with their latest Canadian campaign, ‘Mix Your Neighbourhood’.
The idea was to allow Artificial Intelligence (AI) to use neighbourhoods as the key ingredient in the creation of a variety of cocktails, which would subsequently give residents a chance to “taste” their area.
The brand decided to utilise Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create a collection of cocktail artwork that AI specially crafted to embrace the countless characteristics that make neighbourhoods across Canada so special.
Looking at everything from the diversity of the community to the area’s history and culture, absolut engaged locals to discover the key ingredients of their neighbourhood and what makes it unique. Keep in mind, these ingredients weren’t actual liquids you might find in a cocktail but rather concept that described the area – think aesthetics, mindsets and values rather than spirits, liqueurs and bitters.
The rise of AI “presented a unique opportunity to adopt a new approach to mixing up cocktails,” said Caroline Begley, VP of marketing at Corby Spirit and Wine, which represents Absolut in Canada.We believe in pushing creative boundaries and finding new ways for self-expression,” she told Adweek.
Once the concepts for each area were fed into the AI, the system generated images of cocktails with vibrant colours in extravagantly shaped glasses and garnishes. It was then time for a human hand to take control, as the brand presented the images to local bartenders for them to develop drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic that resembled the images.
For instance, Banff Avenue in Banff which had the ingredients for the AI of glacial rivers, trails, Canadian Rockies and adventure which got translated to a cocktail that contains Absolut Vanilla, Blue Curacao, Lemon Juice and a Maraschino Cherry.
Or Old Toronto which had ingredients of industrial, historic, foodie and street art which was mixed to create a drink that contains Absolut Grapefruit, Soda water Cranberry Juice and a wedge of lemon.
“Canada has many diverse neighbourhoods and communities,” Begley continued. “We wanted this campaign to be hyperlocal, celebrate this diversity and feel very close to Canadian consumers.
“For decades, Absolut has celebrated different cities, and we loved the idea of extending it to more local representation—all with the same goal of making Absolut more personal to people and the places that they live.”
Images, recipes and more information are available on Absolut’s website, where Canadians can also nominate their neighbourhood to be “mixed” next.
