In the fall of 2018, for the fourth consecutive year, YBIMC’s PR and social media efforts helped Forty Creek lift a fan favourite event to new heights. Whisky Weekend, the brand’s annual celebration of all things Forty Creek (and all things Canadian), drew crowds in the thousands, attracting whisky enthusiasts from the surrounding region and beyond.
Hosted at the Forty Creek Distillery in Grimsby, Ontario, the two-day event continued the tradition of offering fans unprecedented behind-the-scenes access with tours, tastings, seminars, a bottle engraving station, and more. As with past editions, it also marked the launch of the distillery’s annual limited release.
For 2018, that release took the form of Forty Creek Unity – the brand’s first-ever fan-selected whisky, chosen by five lucky Facebook contest winners. A limited release of 15,000 bottles, Unity has gone on to impress fans and critics alike, earning a coveted spot amongst Whisky Advocate’s Top 20 Whiskies of 2018. With some of the lucky Unity winners returning to celebrate the whisky they had helped select, Whisky Weekend 2018 was an all-around proud moment for the brand and its fans.
YBIMC’s social media efforts included promotion of seminar ticket sales, behind-the-scenes content previewing the launch of Forty Creek Unity, real-time Instagram Stories, and a post-event recap video. PR highlights included event listings in local media, a private tasting with key spirits writers, and post-event reviews of Forty Creek Unity.
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