ASA clears Welsh vodka brand

A television advert for Welsh vodka, Brecon Five, has been cleared of any breach of advertising regulations after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received a number of complaints from viewers who felt that it “presented a negative stereotype of Welsh people as being of low intelligence”.

The ad for the Penderyn Distillery brand is one in a series that uses the tagline “Now that’s not what you’d expect from Wales.” It portrays a television quiz show in which a Welsh woman correctly answers a question about a philosophical concept with “Existentialism, innit.” Complainants felt that the ad insulted Welsh women, and suggested that a knowledgeable Welsh person is surprising.
According to the ASA ruling, Newhaven Communications defended their ad, saying they “had not intended to insult the viewers… the ad did not imply that Welsh people were of low intelligence”. The Broadcasting Advertising Clearance Centre “believed the ad was self-mocking, light-hearted and cheeky”.
The ASA agreed, clearing the ad with the explanation: “We acknowledged that some viewers had felt insulted by the ad, but we nevertheless considered that most people would view the ad as a humorous play on the vodka’s origin in Wales and not as insulting to Welsh people, or women."

Clinton Cawood, 12/12/07