Scientifically Delicious
877 has branding down to a science.
At this year’s annual Turbine Flats martini competition, we brought home the gold—or should we say, silver—after winning “Best Theme” for our creative and cohesive martini, serving station and branding efforts. But how did we get to the point of such massive success? It all started with a giant cucumber.
No one knew where it came from, no one knew how it got so big and no one ever intended to eat it. This giant cucumber simply sat in our office until it was so mushy we had to say goodbye, and in its month-long life, it served as a quality source of entertainment for our team. Got a note? Staple it to the cucumber. Feeling sad? Put googly eyes on the cucumber. This vegetable was a great friend to all of us here at 877, so it was only fitting that our martini was cucumber-flavored as a tribute to our beloved, green friend.
Formulating Success
But we couldn’t just serve any old cucumber martini. We needed to give it a theme, some character, some life. In the martini-naming process we questioned what the scientific name for a cucumber was, and upon discovering it was cucumis sativus, we simply couldn’t not name it that. Thus, the Cucumis Sativus martini was born. You’re welcome.
Before the big event, our copywriter and designer potentially went overboard in the lab creating an entire brand for this drink, from menu signs to posters to hang in the hallway. We decked out our serving table with beakers and dry ice and even bought a mad scientist suit and glasses. We had a full-blown, science-themed drink lab going for us, and we were ready to show it off.
Atomically Awesome
Although we won “Best Theme” and not “Best Drink,” this martini was a winner, to us and many others. We started by adding sliced cucumbers and fresh basil leaves to two “beakers” of Skyy vodka to create an infused, cucumber-basil base for our martini. We then formulated each cocktail to order by combining the vodka with simple syrup, lime juice and ice in the shaker. To stay true to both our brand and the scientific theme, we garnished our drinks with a flake of real silver, truly making it the silver standard of martinis.
The crowd was impressed—so impressed that we ran out of vodka and had to go get more. Yes, that means we used twice as much vodka as everyone else (each team was provided one big bottle of vodka or gin; we used two) and still ran out. What can we say? A martini is best served strong.
When it was all said and done, the Turbine Flats martini party was once again a success. We were glad to honor our favorite cucumber with not only a delicious drink, but an entire theme that revolved around his scientific name. Whether it’s for a client or for a cucumber martini, Agency 877 is able to deliver unique, cohesive branding every time.