Four roses logo

Are You Over 21?

Four Roses Knows Advertising

blog | 10/09/2019

1939 1999 274 e1570649186835

Four Roses has a long and interesting advertising history with an internal archive collection dating as early as 1934. A few months ago, we looked at one of our most iconic ads that first appeared in the summer of 1940. We’re looking back just a few more years this time to see how we promoted our smooth and mellow Bourbon in the late 1930s. This series of ads often highlighted what made our Bourbon different from all the rest. They also invite the reader to try our Bourbon to see for themselves.

In this ad, we see a leisurely gentleman enjoying a casual afternoon by the pool. He has both his pipe and drink in hand with Four Roses Bourbon proudly on display next to him. The text is focused on articulating the refreshing nature of a Four Roses and soda, and even suggests that the reader change their drink order from “three to four.” It also tells the reader to “sip slowly” which is advice we think is still relevant today!   

Below, we see more examples of the ad inviting the reader to try the product themselves. Because we understand what makes our Bourbon so different, we’re confident that you’ll love the taste if you try it and our advertising in the 1930s relied on that confidence.

You’ll also see below that we were just as proud of our grain then as we are now. So proud in fact that we spotlighted this important ingredient in an ad. This print ad brings up visuals of state fairs and homegrown competition. Here, our difference is highlighted in the superiority of the grain. A top-notch grain will produce the finest Bourbon and we still think that’s true today.

Below, you can see ads that took a more experimental turn and are somewhat playful for the reader. In these ads, we invite the reader to peek behind the curtain with us to see what goes into making a beautiful ad and beautiful Bourbon. In both versions of the ad, the value of the product comes through in the process where every step is meaningful and valuable to the end result. We haven’t shown the behind the scenes peek in our print ads in recent years, but if you follow us on social media, we capture a lot of the process that goes into launching a new product. If you don’t already, give us a follow on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter so you can get all the special details.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHROMA 230131 2049

find
four roses
near you