Pearse Lyons Distillery
New spirit from the Golden Triangle
Highlights
➜ Successful launch event with attendance by key industry stakeholders
➜ Third-party endorsements of new product by whiskey aficionados
➜ Launch positioned distillery among craft drinks community in Ireland
The Brief
The Pearse Lyons Distillery is a boutique distillery in the heart of the Dublin Liberties. Founded by the late Dr. Pearse Lyons, a successful Irish entrepreneur, the distillery is a legacy venture which pays homage to the cooperage ancestry of Dr. Lyons. In doing so by being part of the famed ‘golden triangle’ area of the Dublin Liberties and on the site of the former St. James church.
In July 2018, the distillery launched the first new 5-year whiskey produced in Ireland for 25 years. The limited release spirit came in just 4,000 individually numbered bottles. The premium spirit was exclusively sold at SuperValu Ireland and select on-trade outlets nationwide.
The Approach
The product positioning, quality and packaging design all informed the approach we took to launch the whiskey. Leveraging its unique qualities, we engaged whiskey enthusiasts, drinks media and industry connoisseurs with a range of experiential and media relations tactics.
An intimate tasting event was co-ordinated in the distillery, featuring a high-end canapé menu designed by SuperValu ambassador Kevin Dundon that complemented the tasting notes of the spirit; premium printed invitations and goodybags were created which elevated design attributes of the product packaging and the golden colour of the liquor.
This activity was further enhanced with a series of media partnerships which attracted the premium niche target audience.
The Impact
The whiskey launch was a great success, attracting leading drinks and whiskey writers, and industry stakeholders who gave hugely positive feedback to the client about the quality of the event. The launch generated strong media coverage across trade, drinks and national media and generated buzz on digital channels which raised interest in the product.
In addition to this, product reviews were undertaken by whiskey aficionados that attended the event which were all positive in nature, and provided third-party endorsements. The inaugural event at the then-newly opened distillery helped to position it in the company of Ireland’s passionate craft drinks community.
