Tooth & Nail Wine Company takes AR to new levels with the introduction of animated character soundscapes
April 18th – Paso Robles, CA – Paso’s Tooth & Nail Wine Company, located in Paso Robles along California’s Central Coast, has announced the debut of their newest AR (augmented reality) wine label. Launched under The Squad line of wines, the 2020 Squad “Tinsel” Cabernet Sauvignon will feature the character “Tinsel”, one of several “Squad” members; a fictional line of characters inspired by real life people and how they’ve confronted an ever-changing often unsettling modern world.
TACTIC, the design firm responsible for bringing Tinsel to life, makes experiential content of all types focused on immersive digital platforms and installations. TACTIC Founder Peter Oberdorfer says, “Our team is made up of artists, technicians and makers that have worked in adjacent mediums like games and film. We think that there’s so much to draw from in those industries, in terms of creating visually rich, immersive, and interactive experiences in the real world. For us, having brands and products be able to tell interesting stories is an unexpected surprise for most consumers, and gives an opportunity for surprise and delight in new places. Brands like Tooth and Nail have such strong imagery to begin with, it’s a wonderful opportunity to apply an additional layer of artistic content and integrate the virtual into the real world. Consumers increasingly are encountering brands and products in new places and on their own terms, often outside of traditional retail spaces. Augmented Reality allows brands to tell their stories directly from their products and packages and do so in a way that creates an emotional connection to the brand through visual storytelling. With the ubiquity of phones in our lives, and with the manner in which people increasingly use a ‘camera first’ engagement with the world (TikTok, Instagram, QR codes, etc) it’s such a natural extension of technology into the consumer space to have these products begin to speak to users directly.”
“In late 2020 Rob approached Studio Ethur Ethur to develop a branded series of labels that would shake up the market,” says artist Hal Ethridge. He continues, “As a team we understood the character development within this process was monumental to the success of this series. The team at Tooth & Nail was pertinent in finding the voice & tone of each character; working closely with Rob to narrow down the characteristics of each personified label. After months of development, the “Squad Series” emerged, consisting of a four-varietal line of rag-tag, gritty survivalists. Each character has their own story & persona, tasked to take on the demanding world we live in. Combinations of vibrant color palettes, foils, print techniques & resolute characters were elemental in bringing forth a product that provoked the curious consumer. To further amplify the concept, we worked with the team at Tactic Studio to bring to life each character through AR technology creating an immersive, shareable experience to this evocative series of wines.”
Set to debut nationally this month, the Squad Tinsel Cabernet Sauvignon is the first of four labels highlighting wines from the 2019 and 2020 vintages. Future offerings will introduce new characters, with attendant soundscapes, to the consumer. “The Squad line of wines represents what I feel is a genuine connection we have with our customers. The pandemic was a difficult time for everyone, and we witnessed firsthand the grit and loyalty of our customer base in face of such a challenging time. These characters are a tribute to them and their resiliency,” says Rob Murray.
To complete the immersive, AR experience, Murray enlisted singer-songwriter Taylor Belmore Collins to bring the sound of Tinsel to life. Belmore-Collins, of the popular California-based band, Arthur Watership, says, “The chance to create the voice and sonic atmosphere for Tooth and Nail’s Tinsel Cabernet Sauvignon was a special time to jump into world-creating with sounds again. It was also a secret fulfillment of mine to voice a character. The creative spark has spurred the finishing of the full-length record, The Changeling, set to be released this year.”
The 2020 Squad “Tinsel” Cabernet Sauvignon by Tooth & Nail Wine Company will be distributed nationally and will retail for $26.00 a bottle. To learn more about the Tinsel Cabernet Sauvignon augmented reality experience, please visit: AR Landing Page (toothandnailwine.com)
To learn more about Studio Ethur Ethur, please visit Studio Ethur Ethur
To learn more about Taylor Belmore Collins and Arthur Watership, please visit Arthur Watership (bandcamp.com)
