Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky invited
travellers to venture into the world of malt whiskies to “Take Home a Monkey”
Leading up to the Chinese New Year 2016, Year of the
Monkey, Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Whisky launched a unique “Take Home a
Monkey Today” activation drive in Kuala Lumpur International Airport Two
(KLIA2) Arrivals during October.
With a cheeky theme of “How to Care for your Monkey”, the
activation was a quirky take on trading up blended whisky drinkers to premium
malt whisky and looking to encourage bourbon drinkers into the malt market.
Dressed in neon-safety vests akin to “charity workers” on
the streets, brand advocates initiated sampling trials of Monkey Shoulder with
travellers while explaining the brand origin. Those who sampled the whisky and in
support of the campaign were given campaign stickers.
With each purchase of a Monkey Shoulder bottle, travellers
received a “mini-monkey”, a 50ml miniature Monkey Shoulder, along with their 1L
bottle packed in a take-away brown carton box with breathing holes that emulate
taking a pet monkey home.
Beneath the playfulness of the brand, lies a serious
whisky. Made by combining small batches of single malts from three of
Speyside’s finest distilleries, it won the “Best Scotch Whisky Aged 20 Years
and Under” in the International Spirit Challenge (ISC) 2015.
Also recently identified by Drinks International as one of
the best-selling whiskies in top bars in London, Singapore and USA, Monkey
Shoulder, which sits in the Blended Malt Scotch Whisky category, is gaining
ground rapidly in travel retail.
Commenting on the brand activity, APAC Travel Retail
Director, Scott Hamilton, shared, “While consumer interest in Single Malt Whisky
has picked up considerably, the Blended Malt Scotch Whisky category is growing
faster as it bridges deluxe blended scotch drinkers into the world of malt whisky.
We are anticipating further interest in the Monkey Shoulder brand once Chinese
New Year 2016, the Year of the Monkey swings in.”
The activity ran from 10th October to 31st October at
KLIA2 Arrivals
About Monkey Shoulder:
v The Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt
Whisky is produced by William Grant & Sons Ltd, an award-winning independent
family-owned distiller founded by William Grant in 1886 and today run by his
direct descendants.
v Created by combining small batches
of single malts from three of Speyside’s finest distilleries in a marrying tun
for three to six months, it is a 100% malt Scotch whisky, distilled, matured
and bottled in Scotland.
v The term “monkey shoulder” harks
back to whisky making heritage of William Grant & Sons. It is a reference
to a condition that maltmen sometimes picked up while working long shifts,
turning the barley by hand. It had a tendency to cause their arm to hang down a
bit like a monkey’s, so they nicknamed it “monkey shoulder’. Whilst the maltmen currently are among the
few who still turn the barley manually, working conditions have changed which
means this injury has been consigned to the past. Today, the name Monkey
Shoulder lives on as an affectionate tribute, to honour the hard graft of all
the maltmen past and present.
Tasting notes:
Nose: Zesty Orange meets mellow vanilla, honey and spiced
oak
Taste: Mellow vanilla with spicy hints
Finish: Super smooth
Superb quality for drinking neat and balanced for mixing
in a wide variety of cocktails
~ ENDS ~
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