Wild Turkey

Before starting ethnographies, we wondered if Wild Turkey lovers would be hard to find, and instead we'd meet lukewarm likers who drank it because their parents did. In fact, Wild Turkey was a proud and intentional choice—gritty, quirky, and far more interesting than biggest competitor Jack Daniel’s—the Disneyland of whiskey and panic order at the bar. In a category that was all about tradition, and where young men felt pressured to follow the crowd, we saw a huge opportunity for Wild Turkey to stand for having the conviction to go your own way instead. So instead of minimizing Wild Turkey's weird and unique qualities, we reframed them: the brand was not old fashioned but authentic; its liquid strength a reflection of strength of character; its strange brand name a symbol of being yourself. Once known as the ‘bourbon with (a bad) attitude’ Wild Turkey could become the brand that could be bottled, but never tamed.