Patrón Takes Viewers on a Virtual Tequila Tour

The latest brand to use virtual reality, Patrón shows users the entire tequila-making process, from picking agave plants to boxing bottles, from the perspective of a bee.

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo, Patrón launched a new virtual reality (VR) experience giving consumers a behind-the-scenes look at the production of its tequila.

Shot with a drone outfitted with seven GoPro cameras, the experience is from the perspective of a bee. Viewers fly deep into an agave field and onto a truck where the tequila-producing plants are loaded. The journey continues through the gates of Patrón’s Mexico distillery, experiencing the sights and sounds of the tequila-making process all the way through to the boxing of the bottles.

During a time when people are so ingredient-conscious and want to know where their food comes from, the idea behind “The Art of Patrón” is for the brand to showcase its “artisanal over automation” method, as Adrian Parker, vice president of digital marketing, puts it.

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“Everyone knows Patrón, but do you really know Patrón?” Parker asks. “What we want to do is tell the craft story and show people the people behind the process.”
The campaign was executed by Firstborn, the same creative agency behind Mountain Dew’s recent foray into VR. Like the soft drink brand, Patrón isn’t monetizing its experience, at least directly.

Parker says The Art of Patrón, which will be featured at launch events and tastings around the country before eventually ending up online, will elevate the brand, leading to “much more investment into the ecosystem.” He believes that VR monetization will happen later, as more brands adopt the technology. Samsung Mobile, for one, just created a VR experience putting users in the middle of a superhero battle to promote both The Avengers movie and its VR headset.

“We’ve led the growth in the tequila category for so long, it only makes sense to lead that innovative step of taking this century-old process and reimagining it through the eyes of something new and groundbreaking,” Parker says.

He adds that making The Art of Patrón from a bee’s-eye view adds another layer to the experience. Unconstrained by the limits of human movement, users are able to float and see the Mexican highlands and the colorful distillery in a totally different way.

“Bees chase the [agave’s] nectar, so to have it following the plant onto the truck to the hacienda and explore the distillery became the vehicle of the story,” says Cameron Templeton, associate creative director at Firstborn.

The bee’s taste for agave nectar is the reason the insect is featured on Patrón’s logo, which is ultimately what gave Firstborn the idea for the VR experience.

“You can say we found inspiration at the bottom of a bottle – or the side of it,” Templeton says.

Homepage image via Shutterstock.

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