This summer, William Grant & Sons Global Travel Retail and the International Shoppes partnered to bring Hendrick’s Gin to travelers at John F. Kennedy and Philadelphia International Airports. In a two-month period, more than 3 million consumers were introduced to the brand through a series of brand activations ending with the creation of Hendrick’s Victorian Hothouse, a concourse activity at Jet Blue’s JFK Terminal 5, from Sept. 5-12. The brand activations included Hendrick’s Birdcage merchandising units, ice cream tricycle cart sampling bars, Victorian croquet sets and in-store branding. Hendrick’s Victorian Hothouse featured a gothic-style front and weather vane made from cucumbers as well as brand decorations.

Winning park

After 13 million votes were tallied, Oak Park in Minot, N.D., came out on top as the winner of The Coca-Cola Co.’s second annual “America Is Your Park” campaign. In addition to winning the title of “America’s Favorite Park,” Oak Park was awarded a $100,000 recreation grant made possible by the Coca-Cola Live Positively initiative. Second and third place winners also received grants. Soudan Underground Mine State Park in Soudan, Minn., and Cunningham Park in Joplin, Mo., received $50,000 and $25,000 grants, respectively. The grants will be used to restore, rebuild or enhance places for people of all ages to be active outdoors.

‘Cheers to Education’

J.J. Taylor Distributing Florida Inc., Tampa, Fla., donated $20 million in beer excise taxes to Step Up For Students, a non-profit organization that provides scholarships to underprivileged kindergarten through high school students in Florida. J.J. Taylor presented checks to the organization at its “Cheers to Education” events, which took place at three of its Florida distribution centers. The company joined the program as a corporate sponsor in 2011 and has pledged the largest single redirection in the history of the program, which will provide scholarships for nearly 4,850 low-income children in Florida to attend a school that best meets their learning needs, the company says.

Master homebrewers

Pilsner Urquell announced the winners of its 2011 Master Homebrewer competition, which took place in Chicago, New York City and Washington, D.C. The homebrewers were tasked with re-creating the Czech-style pilsner made famous by Josef Groll in 1842. Each beer was judged according to cleanliness, artistic impression and, most of all, accuracy to Beer Judge Certification Program style. Of 125 competitors, three claimed the title of Pilsner Urquell Master Homebrewer. The winning homebrewers were the following: Philip Jensen of State College, Pa.; Aaron Hermes of Leesburg, Va.; and Jeff Lewis of Hilliard, Ohio. Each winner will travel to Plzen, Czech Republic, later this year to tour the historic brewery and attend the International Master Bartender Competition in Prague.

Roots marketing

Jarritos launched a new campaign to honor its Mexican roots and loyal fans, it says. The campaign, “We’re Not From Here,” made its debut in September and features original wall mural art, a branded food truck and sampling bicycles. It also supports the brand’s new website, which includes videos and user-generated content, as well as in-store signage and media sponsorships. Murals and sampling events will kick off in the Los Angeles area, followed by other markets such as New York City and Austin, Texas, in 2012.

Nationwide taste test

To promote its new spiced rum, Bacardi introduced fans to the Bacardi OakHeart Challenge, which attempted to bring together more than 25,000 consumers around the country on the same day at the same time to try the rum neat, over ice or with cola in bars. The social media component of the OakHeart Challenge was the “Three Word Toast” contest on Facebook, where fans were challenged to come up with the perfect three-word toast for Bacardi’s new product. The best toasts were put to a vote each week and winners received OakHeart steins. The contest lasts through Nov. 23.