Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/1031957
October 2018 WINES&VINES 29 PACKAGING I usually reply, "Drugs," and they laugh and wink, but honestly, I don't really know where the ideas come from, but often they just come from some strange place; maybe the same place that gives forth verbal puns also produces visual puns. But remember, it can be a two-edged sword; he who lives by the yucks, can also die by yucks, as I was subsequently to learn at great cost. Once the wine was named "Old Telegram," I knew in a flash that the label just had to look like a real old telegram, with the ticker tape pasted on the paper and the use of the word "STOP" breaking up sen- tences. (Figure 1) (That's an old vaudeville shtick, by the way.) We managed to get some Morse code dots and dashes embossed on the label. (It's my conceit that someone somewhere out there appreciates this extra level of fanatical detail; maybe just maybe that is why some of our labels have made such an impression over the years.) Plan A was to call the wine "Old Telegram," but just as the Grenache grapes were about to arrive at the door, I thought it wouldn't hurt to do a bit more research on the whole subject of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. I found a copy of the Living- stone-Learmonth book, "The Wines of the Rhône," and came across an interesting passage about how, in 1954, the mayor of one of the towns of Châteauneuf- du-Pape was quite concerned about flying saucers and flying cigares landing in the vineyards, and he persuaded the town council to adopt legislation prohibiting such landings. When I read this, I immediately thought that this would make a better label for a faux Châteauneuf, because it was funnier and a more all-encompass- ing joke, i.e. you didn't need spe- cial knowledge to appreciate it. (Figure 2) (We did, of course, later recycle the Old Telegram concept for our 100% Mourvèdre.) The idea was to reference the context (in this case, Châteauneuf), take a classic look, but do some- thing slightly subversive with it, with the idea of letting the knowl- edgeable wine-drinking insider in on a private joke. It's hard for people to always remember names of things, but the fact that there was a UFO on the label would cer- tainly make the package memo- rable. But the real salient point is that I was trying to introduce a new, unknown style of wine to the American public and needed to overcome the customer's inherent reticence about asking about some- thing they didn't know. When you ask, "Why is the wine called 'Le Cigare Volant,'" this al- lows a restaurant server to over- come his or her own shyness and feel free to tell a story about this crazy law in southern France. You're thus using humor as a means to lower the barrier to entry to the sometimes formidable, mysterious TTB LABEL APPROVALS Low per-label costs Gov't. Liaison Negotiations or Footwork Reasonable Hourly Rates TRADEMARK SEARCHES As Low as $185 Your trade names or designs are searched at the U.S. Patent Office to help establish valuable ownership or avoid costly legal liability. Over 100 years' total staff experience handling every government liaison need for industry. Phone or write for details. 200 N. Glebe Rd., Suite 321 Arlington, Virginia 22203 Phone: (703) 524-8200 Fax: 525-8451 TOLL-FREE 1-800-642-6564 Major Credit Cards Accepted www.trademarkinfo.com Since 1957 GovtLiaison_Dir08 11/29/07 2:00 PM Pag 715 S. Guild Avenue • Lodi, CA 95240 • 209-370-1616 info@watermarklabels.com • www.watermarklabels.com Complimentary press proofs Unlimited Capabilities | Variable data | Custom die-cutting Figure 1: The original "Old Telegram" labels, a nod to the winery Vieux Télégra- phe in Châteauneuf-du-Pape.