Another week, another beer ad. What is it with these brewers? Anyone would think that now summer has arrived we are all desperate to spend hours down at the boozer quenching our thirst with “lager, lager, lager, lager”.
And so to it falls to James Bond “bleeding eye” villain Mads Mikkelsen to try to persuade us that Carlsberg’s new Danish Pilsner is a far, far more superior pint than that watered down muck they used to dish up in Seventies under the strapline “Probably the best lager in the world”.
Having launched the “new” Carlsberg last month with the confession that its previous brew was “probably not the best beer in the world”, Fold7 has devised this UK-specific follow-up to run through the summer and, according to the bumf at least, it will “deliver the same honesty and humour as the campaign that has captured the attention of the nation over the last month”.
In the spot, the Danish hearthrob is seen rowing across a lake as he confesses that “in the UK, Carlsberg pursued being the biggest, not the best and the beer suffered”. When he reaches the far bank, Mikkelsen is handed a pint of the new stuff, which he sups. He then turns to the camera and adds: “Has the person responsible for the old beer been dealt with? Probably.” At which point the camera turns to the lake to show bubbles coming to the surface, suggesting that the old brewer has been dumped off the boat and plunged into the murky depths.
Carlsberg UK vice president of marketing Liam Newton said: “It’s been great to see the reaction so far, and we hope drinkers will respond to the humour of our new ad by trying Carlsberg Danish Pilsner this summer.”
Fold7 chief creative officer Ryan Newey added: “The new spot continues to build on the campaign launched on social media a few weeks ago, Carlsberg confronts the issues it may have had with the old brew and concludes that the issue has now been firmly dealt with, in a way only Carlsberg could.”
The 30-second spot debuts tonight (May 23) during Hatton Garden on ITV and will also run on digital channels; a 50-second version will premiere during Gogglebox on Channel 4 on Friday (May 24).
So, what is the consensus around the Decision Marketing office? Mads Mikkelsen? What’s not to like? Nicely shot and a great script too. Do we suddenly feel the urge to neck copious amounts of lager, lager, lager, lager? Too right, we’re gagging for a pint. We’re off. See you later. Cheers.
Decision Marketing Adometer: 9 out of 10
