Aug 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By Warren N. Bimblick

Ok, I admit it. I take a little nip here and there. And my favorite nip is a colorless juniper berry potion called gin. I experiment a lot with the newest brews, but generally find my way back to either Tanqueray or Bombay.

A recent experiment was a citrus-infused Tanqueray blend called Rangpur. (I have since learned that rangpurs are hybrids between mandarin oranges and lemons, as well as locations in Bangladesh and India.)

Rangpur has made its way to a few bars and liquor stores in New York. It's such a nice drink that for the past couple of months I've become an advocate for it at my favorite watering holes.

And then came June 19…

On said evening, I was catching up on some work at home and cable TV channel surfing when I saw an ad for Tanqueray Rangpur. It directed me to a Web site, www.GlobeProbe.com, to learn more.

Was I going to be connected to my very own GPS system to download where I could find Rangpur? Perhaps an Apple Widget sensor? Or maybe something as mundane as how to mix the perfect Rangpur martini? I was intrigued.

After entering the year of my birth, thus proving that I was indeed old enough to imbibe the brew, I entered the Tanqueray Rangpur site. It had exotic Indian music and some of the most bizarre and offensive graphics caricaturing people from the Indian subcontinent I had ever seen.

Whoever conceived and approved of this tasteless mockery of a culture in an effort to sell gin had clearly lost their mind. That Tanqueray, a division of Diageo plc, had endorsed such a campaign made me proclaim, “Never again shall I drink any Tanqueray product!” Fortunately, there was not a drop of the stuff in the house, so I couldn't ceremoniously pour it down the drain.

And so I immediately trotted to the Diageo Web site and wrote a letter to the public relations department informing them that they had not only offended me, but they'd lost a lifelong (beginning at the appropriate age, of course) customer.

Two days later, I received the following e-mail:

Dear Mr. Bimblick,

Thank you for writing to us regarding our Tanqueray Rangpur advertising. The opinions of our consumers are extremely important to us. We expend an enormous amount of resources soliciting feedback from consumers for the simple reason that we want to market and sell our brands in the best possible way.

It is that commitment to our consumers that moved us to decide to discontinue the Globe Probe campaign and develop new advertising that will be enjoyed by all Tanqueray consumers.

We deeply regret that you have been offended by the Rangpur advertising given your longtime support of the brand.

We hope that you will accept our apology and consider us once again as your gin of choice.

Sincerely,
Kim Daniels
Tanqueray Consumer Care

Wow! Consumerism won against the big guys! I was delighted. Not just because I am part of a worldwide community of television-watching, computer-using gin guzzlers with consciences. But also because we actually had an effect on a company about how it marketed to us.

Enough of us voted with our reactions that a company admitted its marketing mistake. This clearly was an expensive integrated promotional campaign that just went afoul of good taste.

I commend Diageo for not only taking the appropriate action, but for having a real person, rather than “Operator 64” or “Customer Service Department,” respond to me.

As of this writing, www.GlobeProbe.com has a full screen of a mysterious setting with a headline directing me to return to the site after July 16 to find cocktail Nirvana.

Well, I have it marked on my calendar. On that date, I expect to pour myself a Tanqueray Rangpur Gibson on the rocks, sit down at my computer and check out Globe Probe.

And then, of course, I will write Ms. Daniels with my reaction.

Warren N. Bimblick is senior vice president of Penton Media's marketing media and financial services group, of which Promo is a member. E-mail: warren.bimblick@penton.com.

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