‘Daring’ Jägermeister TV ad banned

Jägermeister’s first ever UK TV advert has been banned after it was deemed to encourage “tough” or “daring” behaviour.

The 60-second advert shows a group of male friends on a road trip in Iceland travelling through snowy, mountainous terrain, surfing in icy waters and later arriving at a log cabin where they each take a shot of the German herbal liqueur from a frosted glass.

Raising their glasses to one another, a voice-over states: “Jägermeister. It runs deep”.

The advert made its debut on 5 March and was the brand’s first UK TV ad intended to promote its signature ice cold shot serve.

However shortly after its release a complaint was made to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) by the Youth Alcohol Advertising Council who claimed it irresponsibly linked alcohol with “tough and daring behaviour.”

Responding to the claims Jägermeister said the actors were chosen to look like “experienced ‘outdoor’ men with the stamina for such an expedition” and argued that when surfing “clearly demonstrated a high level of skill, so their actions were in no way irresponsible.”

It added that millions of people in Iceland, North America and Northern Europe regularly drove in icy conditions, and surfing was a common sport that was particularly popular in Iceland, arguing that the expedition was in no way “exceptional”, “dangerous or risky” and no way “tough” or “daring”.

However the ASA disagreed deciding that the advert had breached its code and was “irresponsible” in that it linked an alcoholic product to what it considered was “tough and daring behaviour.”

Banning the ad in the UK the ASA said: “The ASA noted that the ad was set in Iceland and depicted driving in difficult icy conditions and surfing in very cold and rough waters, both of which we considered to be potentially dangerous activities which required skill and daring.

“The group were not shown consuming alcohol, and there was no suggestion that they had done so, prior to the evening when they were shown in a bar. Nonetheless, because the ad featured both alcohol, and physically demanding and challenging activities, we considered that it made a clear association between an alcoholic product and tough and daring behaviour. We therefore concluded that the ad was irresponsible.”

The herbal liqueur is the UK’s third best-selling spirit and number one speciality brand and was recently the chosen tipple of golfer Rory McIlroy who celebrated his Open victory by drinking it from from the Claret Jug.

Earlier this month Diageo was hit with its second advertising ban relating to its Captain Morgan rum brand after the ASA deemed a Facebook ad to be irresponsible in linking alcohol with preventing boredom.