Avallen is made from apples, water and time. The apples need bees, so Mangrove built a campaign around them.
The background
A fresh approach to traditional calvados, Avallen is unique, due to the spirit being made with nothing but apples, water, and time. Each bottle of Avallen removes 2.82kg of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere – an incredible feat! And given that bees are a key part of the pollination process required to grow the juicy apples Avallen is made from, there really was no better time for an awareness campaign than World Bee Day!
Mangrove have supported Avallen Spirits since their launch in the UK, in Spring 2019. The purpose of this campaign was to drive awareness of the spirit and the ethos behind its production, as well as drive sales through the on-trade.
The concept
Mangrove designed and planned a nationwide activation across the on-trade to celebrate World Bee Day. Venues across the country were provided with stock support and menu cards to offer a specific Avallen-based cocktail. For every cocktail sold, Avallen donated £1 to the Bumblebee Conservation Trust – a charity they already support on an ongoing basis.
Whilst this activation was taking place in venues across the UK, Mangrove had something extra-special up their sleeve for some hospitality legends, based in the South-West of England. In collaboration with Cardiff’s award-winning LAB22, the team built out an education tasting day which was attended by the movers and shakers of the hospitality industry.
The finer detail
The on-trade activation
From Southampton to Glasgow, and everything in between, over twenty bars took part in the Avallen Activation. For the duration of the week around World Bee Day (20th May) each venue showcased a special Avallen-fuelled cocktail. For some it was the delicious Avallen Appletini, whilst other venues decided to get creative and design their own cocktail featuring the climate-positive spirit.
Throughout the entire activation the Mangrove Sales Team worked alongside venues, supporting them with provisions, stock support, and guidance to maximise its success.
Education note on bees:
Honey bees are social insects that live in large colonies and are primarily managed for honey production and crop pollination, whereas wild bees encompass a diverse group of solitary or less social species that often nest in the ground or in natural cavities and both play crucial roles in maintaining ecological balance through pollination.
The education day
A good old-fashioned field trip – that was the idea behind the education day, hosted in partnership with longstanding Mangrove partner, LAB22. For four hours, attendees sampled Avallen and a cocktail or two – thanks to Co-founder Tim Etherington-Judge bringing along his ecoTOTE filled with Avallen Appletinis. One guest even affectionately dubbed the ecoTOTE, Tim’s ‘Calvados Robot’. Guests then headed out into nature on a gloriously sunny day. With the support of local apiary, Nature’s Little Helpers, guests tried their hand at beekeeping, learned about the importance of local bee populations, and kept their whistles whetted with Avallen samples and toasties from the Café throughout the day.
On top of raising awareness on behalf of the bees, this part of the day introduced the on-trade to a more conscious way of drinking. By serving Avallen, venues give people the opportunity to help these little pollinators, as well as improve the planet’s biodiversity and battle climate change. Quite an achievement for merely sipping a cocktail.
Then that evening Mangrove had something quite spectacular planned, at LAB22.
The LAB22 activation
In the evening, Avallen hosted a takeover of LAB22 during the bar’s much-loved Monday Night Jazz Night, giving the opportunity to welcome guests into the fold after a day focused on the on-trade. Every tipple served was Calvados, featuring a special Avallen cocktail menu and served up alongside were gourmet toasties – provided by a local wine bar, Nighthawks. Attendees from further afield had the luxury of enjoying the night before being coached back home courtesy of Avallen – and boy oh boy did they all enjoy the night!
The results
The feedback from guests was overwhelmingly positive – with bartenders raving about the sense of community created by spending just one single day together. Co-founder of Avallen Spirits, Tim Etherington-Judge said
Bees are the most important species on earth, tirelessly pollinating flowers that turn into the apples we use to make Avallen and a huge amount of food that we eat so it was great to be able to celebrate these little winged warriors with bars up and down the country and get bartenders from across the South West face to face with them as part of the activation with the wonderful Lab22
Ewan from LAB22 said
Oh my Christ, I love bees. The other day we got to spend the day at Natures Little Helpers with the ever wonderful Tim & Avallen Calvados, where we got to talk all things Bees and go mess about with some of the hives.
In the lovely Welsh sun, it was the perfect way to spend the afternoon, especially with so many pals. Thanks so much to Tim and Avallen Spirits for putting this together, it’s always so special to get to spend time with the community
Bartender at The Dead Canary, David shared
What a Buzzing good day with Avallen Calvados at Natures Little Helpers Apiary followed by some legendary toasties in Lab 22, and a hive of tasty dinks too! Bee-utiful weather, great Bee facts and Bee-licious drinks
Owner of LAB22, Tani Hasa said
We were super excited to be teaming up with Avallen Calvados, not only is the liquid delicious but also a strong ethos of purposely planet positive. The Lab Session excursion to our local Welsh apiary Nature’s Little Helpers was an absolute success and a perfect way to celebrate World Bee Day!
Lab 22’s collaboration with Avallen to offer this free, educational and constructive field trip to our friends in the South-West hospitality industry, allowing them to get a firsthand look at our local producers and what they have to offer is exactly what we wanted to showcase.
What’s next?
Buzzing off the back of this success, Mangrove are planning to run a similar activation for Calvados Day which takes place in October. This lesser-known spirit is currently enjoying a boom and it’s #TeamPurple’s job to build more brand awareness and get more liquid on the discerning lips of British drinkers.
This activation (or series of activations!) was a great example of how different brands and venues, who are aligned on certain values, can really collaborate to do a bit of good in the world – and reap the benefits for their businesses. Above all else, it was a memorable experience; the sunshine, the beekeeping, the flavours, the music, the people – all of these will evoke an emotional response when the guests next pick up a bottle of Avallen behind the bar.
