To the employees of Goose Island, Bourbon County Stout has always been more than liquid in a bottle. We've always known that, but to what extent we had no idea. A lot has changed at Goose Island since the first batch of Bourbon County Stout was brewed and barreled in 1992. As time marched on, the folklore surrounding Bourbon County Stout became as rich and layered as the beer itself. Fact starts to blend with myth, and myth takes away from the process.
That's why a small group of Goose Island employees and two collaborators set out to uncover the full story of Bourbon County Stout. What we found was a story larger than we had ever realized. A story that uncovered a large cast of characters, crossed state lines, and spanned generations. From the loggers that down the American White Oak used to make bourbon barrel staves, to the distillers that fill and age bourbon on those very staves. The resulting video series shows hardcore beer geeks and new craft beer drinkers alike, what it really takes to brew and age Bourbon County Brand Stout through immersive and rich story telling that could only be told by those involved.
This may upset the marketing minded, but the goal of the Grit & Grain video series was never about getting the most views, impressions, or likes. The goal from day one, was to tell the full story of Bourbon County Stout without any extra fluff, just the real story of where the beer came from. How the beer is made, and where the iconic barrel aged stout is going. The strategy came as the video was being conceived. We let the content inform our strategy. As we laid out the storyline, we realized that the concept was larger than we ever imagined and couldn't be covered in 5 minutes or even 10. We decided the story was large enough to break up into nine 4-6 minute videos.
The distribution of the video series was as follows;
Release a 15 second teaser for the whole series two weeks before the first chapter in the series was scheduled to go live. Post video on native players for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Release 30 second trailer for the whole series one week before first chapter in the series was scheduled to go live. Post video on native players for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Once we had generated buzz among craft beer drinkers around the series, we released the full chapters one week at a time leading up to the Black Friday release of Bourbon County Stout.
6.9M total views of full chapters across Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
42M Total views of trailers across Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
37.1M + Potential impressions around Bourbon County Release.
