Magners to take on cider tax increase with Jack Daniels-style ads

Magners is to launch a multi-million pound TV campaign aiming to get consumers drinking cider this summer, just days after the chancellor, Alistair Darling, increased the duty on it by 10% . The TV campaign, the first by the ad agency Red Brick Road since it won the Magners account last year, marks a change in the ad strategy that the brand has pursued since it launched in the UK in 2006. The tax increase on cider, from midnight on Sunday, will mean drinkers paying about 5p more a litre and 9p more for a 750ml bottle of cider . Outraged cider fans have been flocking to a Facebook fan site, called Leave Our Cider Alone. Magners has widely been considered to have revitalised the cider market in the UK, using a premium gold wrapping on the neck and quality positioning "with ice" to considerably widen the appeal of the drink, helping fuel a doubling of sales between 2004 and 2008 . The new campaign features a quirky take on the Irish heritage of the brand, a more tongue-in-cheek version of the earnest Jack Daniel's positioning that plays on the "home of whiskey" in Lynchburg, Tennessee. Magners' two TV ads, the first of which breaks on Saturday night, are set in the town of Clonmel, Tipperary, where the cider is made. They feature quirky characters single-mindedly dedicated to producing Magners. "Magners is a very strong brand, with a fantastic heritage," said Paul Bartlett, marketing director at Magners. "This new campaign provides us with the springboard for future growth and will enable us to stand apart within the category." • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email [email protected] or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. • If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".