Wasabi and Salty Caramel Popcorn Vodka? Introducing Oddka, Crazy and Beautiful Flavored Vodkas From Wyborowa.

Oddka by Wyborowa, is a new line of creatively flavored vodkas by Pernod Ricard that will initially launch in select U.S. states including Alabama, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, prior to expanding its global distribution later this year.

The unusual beverages have an equally unusual spokesman, a 2-D illustrated gentleman named Wit (more on him later in the post).

Oddka is available as an original, clear vodka and in five unconventional flavors, including Apple Pie, Electricity, Fresh Cut Grass, Salty Caramel Popcorn and Wasabi, each designed to inspire experimentation and self-expression.

The flavors may be weird but bottles are beautiful. Take a look.

Original:


Electricity:


Salty Caramel Popcorn:


Fresh Cut Grass:


Wasabi:


Apple Pie:


Meet Brand Spokesman Wit Oddoski:



The voice and inspiration of the Oddka brand is Wit Oddoski, a virtual character in the real world. He is a charismatic individualist and curious 2-D line drawing born in the age of invention and experimentation who marches to the beat of his own drum. He has made his social debut via Facebook  and Twitter (@WitOddoski), connecting with consumers and sharing imaginative "oddtail" cocktail recipes.



"ODDKA was created for the individual who seeks brands that are confident, expressive and challenge the norms, just like they do," said Maxime Kouchnir, vice president, Pernod Ricard USA. "We are excited about the initial release of ODDKA in select states and sharing our curious approach with these individuals and provoking their senses."

Here's how Wit describes the unique flavors:
Original: I once meditated for a week. Afterwards I came up with the idea of a vodka-flavoured vodka. An idea so fresh, so elegant, so smooth, I couldn’t believe it hadn’t been thought of before. When I discovered it had, I thought I’d make it anyway.

Electricity: Ever wondered what a bolt of lightning tastes like? Me too. That’s why I created this shockingly good tongue-tickling vodka. Now lightning can strike as often as you like.

Salty Caramel Popcorn: I love the movies, though personally I’ve never seen the appeal of those 3D ones. If this flavour was a film it would be a caramel comedy with a sea salt subplot and a warm, feel-good ending.

Fresh Cut Grass: One day my llama distracted the janitor when he was mowing my factory lawn and there was an accident. A fortuitous accident with a crisp and citrusy outcome.

Wasabi: At Ninja school I was taught the saying, ‘The Wasabi-eating Ninja Laughs Last’. I’m still trying to figure out what it means, but in the meantime have created this fiery flavour to creep up on your taste buds. Enjoy.

Apple Pie: Inspired by Grandma Oddoski’s famous apple pies. I gave her my word I would never reveal her secret ingredient. This sweet tasting apple and cinnamon flavour vodka is a tribute to that promise.

The elegant and smooth Original Oddka (40% alc./vol., 80 proof) and the new five sensory-pleasing flavors (30% alc./vol., 60 proof) sell for a suggested retail price of $15.99.

ODDstache mobile app:


To connect fans with the brand's experimental personality, ODDKA launched a free "ODDstache" mobile app, available on iTunes. Men and women alike can grow their very own ODDstache on a mobile photo of their choice. To mature, the mustaches need tending; growth can be accelerated with grooming, feeding and by sharing with friends on Facebook—the more "Likes" received, the more ODD it will grow.


ODDKA

Elvis Jesus Launches Their First Fragrances For Him and Her.

UK-based fashion brand Elvis Jesus has just launched their debut premium fragrances, Elvis Jesus for Him and for Her.



Each of the fragrances embraces the deviant ethos of the brand, with each bottle cleverly encased in a bootleg fashion, buried within the pages of a ‘book’– a nod to the origin of the brand’s namesake. Each glass flacon is emblazoned with the Elvis Jesus logo, rose-coloured gold For Her, and pewter For Him.


above: Elvis Jesus For Her

The books that hold each bottle are bound in lustrous brown or black material, with the Elvis Jesus emblazoned upon each cover, and an homage to the company history upon each spine.


above: Elvis Jesus For Him

The scents themselves embody the play of opposites inherent within the principles of Elvis Jesus. Found within Elvis Jesus For Him is a masculine earthy citrus scent that precludes the lingering masculine notes of cedar, vetivert and sensual woods leave a long lasting, seductive impact. Elvis Jesus For Her opens with a fresh burst of uplifting grapefruit, cherry, and peppermint blended with the woody backdrop of nutmeg that develops into an innately feminine rose, jasmine and cinnamon–evocative of a glamorous bygone era.



Elvis Jesus for Him: ” A masculine Earthy Citrus scent that opens with an explosion of Grapefruit, Orange and spicy Pink Pepper that prelude an earthy heart of Black Pepper, Patchouli and Geranium. The lingering masculine notes of Cedar, Vetivert and sensual Woods leave a long lasting, seductive impact.”



Elvis Jesus for Her: “A fragrance of contrasts, Elvis Jesus For Her opens with a fresh burst of uplifting Grapefruit, Cherry, Bergamot, Elemi and Peppermint blended with the woody backdrop of Nutmeg that develops into an innately feminine heart of Rose, Jasmine, Muguet and Cinnamon – evocative of a glamorous bygone era. The dry down envelops with a sensuous woody blend of Cedar, Courmarin, Amber, Vanilla, Tonka Bean and Leather. A Woody Floral scent that lingers to give an indelible impression.”



Elvis Jesus For Him and For Her is available in 50 and 100 ml Eau de Toilette.

Buy them here

A Great Bottle Design by Karim Rashid and Fabulous Brand Imagery For One Weird Vodka: AnestasiA Sensational Spirit.

AnestasiA Vodka is touted as the world's first 'tingling' spirit. An ultra-premium five times distilled vodka made from Cascade spring water and organic corn from Oregon. It claims to have a frost-like cooling sensation and it is housed in an award-winning bottle design by Karim Rashid.




Let me begin this post by telling you it was my intention to commend the brand on their bold image conveyed through the unique and bizarre photography on their site. However, as I am writing this post, the AnestasiA Vodka brand has since replaced several of the more interesting photographs I've shown here throughout this post with more mundane and unoriginal ones. More on that later.



Back to the vodka.
First off, I shall explain what they mean by tingling. In this particular case, AnestasiA (I'm guessing this is a deliberate play on anesthesia or anesthetic) means a menthol-like numbing sensation. Something that several reviews have found very distateful. Drink Spirits calls it "the Worst Tasting Vodka They've Ever Had" and Drink Hacker claims that "For someone expecting a more traditional vodka, the attack to the palate is jarring."



Not at all universally disliked, the vodka has received some awards for its unique taste: The Beverage Testing Institute 2013 Platinum Medal and Double Gold Medal and the MicroLiquor Triple Gold Winner for Taste, Packaging and Design. And the Food & Drink Magazine blog says it goes down more smoothly than other vodkas when drunk straight.



“AnestasiA Vodka is made from a formula developed by food scientists that reduces the burn inherent in alcohol, especially vodka, making it more pleasant to consume,” Yuliya Mamontova, co-founder of Numbrands, Inc., says. This gives it a distinct tingling or cooling sensation some drinkers have likened to mint, though it does not contain menthol.



As a traditional Vodka lover, the taste does not appeal to me, but I loved the image the brand initially conveyed through their website and social media with bizarre but beautiful photography by Philipp Matt.

I use the past tense because I visited their site again today and was dismayed to see more 'ordinary-looking' photography. Someone in the marketing department must have gotten nervous and most all the wonderful images I've shown here are no longer on their site but instead have been replaced with the more expected images of a blond woman posing in a chair and on a stairwell (see below):


above: these images have replaced the masked bartender, poodle and unicorn images shown in this post on the AnestasiA website

Youthful, hip and funky, the brand's inital image is (was?)  a perfect fit for the award-wining bottle design by Karim Rashid.

The Bottle:

The drawings:

The inital prototype:

The final product:



The Case Design:


On their site they claim "AnestasiA is the culmination of a quest to create the world’s most effortless vodka. After years of research, it turned out that the best vodka can be hand crafted right here in Bend, Oregon, USA —born from Cascade Mountain spring water and locally grown organic corn."



"These select ingredients and hand-craftsmanship make AnestasiA VodkaTM a world-class spirit. It is five times filtered through charcoal and crushed volcanic rock as well as five times distilled."



The vodka is also naturally gluten-free (as if that matters).

Description from their site:
At the laboratory one day, a brilliant scientist eyed the tingling agent he was about to use in an experiment. That night, over drinks with his Russian mistress, they imagined combining the tingling sensation with the exuberance of vodka. In that moment, AnestasiA was born—the combination of a once-dream. Bottled in Oregon from organic corn vodka and distilled 5 times, this concoction only needed one finishing touch: world famous designer Karim Rashid. With everything in place, AnestasiA became the astoundingly unique and unrivaled product before you.


all images courtesy of AnestasiA Sensational Spirit

AnestasiA
You can purchase it here and try it for yourself.

The Winner (And All 29 Finalists) of The Heineken Future Bottle ‘Remix’ Challenge

Heineken has announced the winner of their 2012/13 Your Future Bottle Design Challenge. The winning design (shown below) was created by Fernando Degrossi, who is a graphic designer from Sao Paolo, Brazil.

The Winning Design:


Fernando submitted several designs, a few others of which were finalists and shown later in this post.

To celebrate its 140th year, Heineken put its design elements online and challenged creatives everywhere to ‘remix’ these assets into an iconic bottle, designed for the future. The remix theme gave designers total freedom to delve into Heineken’s past and play with the brand's DNA to create a cool new design. The winning approach remixes five circular Heineken logos from five different decades, and incorporates the red star, Heineken’s famous trademark.

The video invitation to the design challenge:


The winning design and the finalists were selected at a live judging event at Heineken’s space in the heart of the creative community at Milan Design Week, which has been visited by more than 10,000 design fans since opening on Tuesday. Fernando’s design beat almost 2,000 entries and becomes the second Limited Edition bottle that will be produced. It will go on sale around the world in early 2014.

The Top 5 Finalists:
Anna Ptasinka:

Andy Audsley:

Tomasz Wagner:

Fernando Degrossi:

Bartek Bak:


The Other 24 Finalists (in no particular order):
Balazs Kaczper:

Davide Colombo:

Elina Presniakova:

Fernanda Ochoa:

Fernando Degrossi:

Fernando Degrossi:

Ji Yeon Kim:

Johan Bl:

Joris Blomjous:

Milos Dostanic:

Nemanja Djordjevic:

Nicolas Vicario:

Nivedita Sivaprakash:

Paolo Tonon:

Pat Corrigan:

Thijs Mensink:

Victor Correa:

Dominique Hernandez:

Leondios Tsiobanelis:

Marco Bellarosa Architects:

Marco Bellarosa Architects:

A Serbian designer whose name I do not have the characters to type (I'm so sorry) so I pasted his name above his design:


Sergey Rizhov:

Sergey Rizhov:


The judging panel consisted of designer Joshua Davis; Evan Orensten of Cool Hunting; Mark Dytham of PechaKucha and Heineken’s global head of design Mark van Iterson.

Mark van Iterson, Global Head of Design at Heineken, said "This is the completion of a five month process; a contest that has attracted over 2,000 high quality entries. The use of our heritage in this winning design is really clever and results in a very contemporary iconic bottle. It was a bold step to put our brand history into the hands of emerging designers, but Heineken is a progressive brand and this contest has proved again that opening up in the search for creativity pays off.”

Heineken