Brewdog has responded to a ruling from the Portman Group that packaging for its Dead Pony Club beer broke alcohol marketing rules in characteristically bullish fashion.
In a statement issued yesterday, Brewdog co-founder James Watt apologised to the Portman Group for “not giving a sh*t about today’s ruling”.
“Indeed, we are sorry for never giving a sh*t about anything the Portman Group has to say, and treating all of its statements with callous indifference and nonchalance,” Watson added.
The Portman Group’s The Independent Complaints Panel had ruled yesterday that the 3.8% abv Dead Pony Club broke marketing rules because the strapline ‘rip it up down empty streets’ associated the product with antisocial behaviour.
The panel also found that the phrases ‘drink fast, live fast’ and ‘we believe faster is better’ could encourage the consumer to drink the product rapidly.
“The Code rules do not exist to prevent humorous or innovative brand marketing but to make sure that humour is used responsibly,” said Henry Ashworth, chief executive of the Portman Group. “We urge producers to exercise due diligence and consult our Code Advisory Team if they are in any doubt.”
In his response, Watt slammed the Portman Group – set up by the alcohol industry to promote responsible drinking – as “a gloomy gaggle of killjoy jobsworths” who treated beer drinkers like “brain dead zombies and vilify creativity and competition”.
“While the Portman Group lives out its days deliberating whether a joke on a bottle of beer is responsible or irresponsible use of humour, at BrewDog we will just get on with brewing awesome beer and treating our customers like adults,” Watson said. “I’m sure that makes Henry Ashworth cry a salty tear into his shatterproof tankard of Directors as he tries to enforce his futile and toothless little marketing code, but we couldn’t give a sh*t about that, either.
“We sincerely hope that the sarcasm of this message fits the Portman Group criteria of responsible use of humour.”
No stranger to whipping up controversy, Brewdog’s past stunts include the ‘Hello, my name is Vladimir’ beer, developed in protest against Russia’s anti-gay laws at the start of the Winter Olympics this year, and the ‘Never mind the Anabolics’ beer, designed to “unmask the corporate beast” of the Olympic Games in 2012.
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