42 Below tells the story of New Zealand

42 Below vodka has really taken off around the world, helped no doubt by the Lord of the Rings being made in New Zealand. If you’re watching the following video and you’re wondering if New Zealand is in Australia, it’s not. 42 BELOW is a vodka company started up in NZ by “Chief Vodka Bloke”, Geoff Ross. Geoff was previously managing director for ad agency DDB Worldwide Communications in Wellington, NZ but quit after taking his backyard distillery the next step towards international exporting. He thought that New Zealand’s image as naturally pure and clean would suit the drink. Geoff, Darryl Ross and Simon Chesterman made the ad in the early days when there was no budget for advertising. “The story made us laugh so we sent it out to a few friends of 42 BELOW and it has now travelled around the globe”.

“Each morning the Maori people of New Zealand, which is part of Australia, rise at dawn, cook some eggs, put on their grass skirts and go out to the fields to make 42 Below vodka. There they trade with the fierce All Black tribes that live in the hill country for raw ingredients and ship them down the Shotover in traditional Americas Cup yachts to the 42 Below factory. Then using only stainless steel distilleries carved from ancient kauri trees they create the world’s smoothest vodka which they give to the white man in exchange for blankets, muskets and hobbits. And as the day turns to night, the tribes come together, drink large amounts of 42 Below, carve plastic tikis for Air New Zealand and tell the traditional Maori joke which goes like this: Knock knock. Who’s there? Statue. Statue who? Statue bro? 42 Below Vodka – made right here in Sydney, New Zealand.”

Click on the image below to play the video in YouTube (HD)