Happy Holidays!

GAP Promotions would like to wish you and your family a happy holiday season and a fantastic New Year! Since we're all about the holiday spirit, below are some drink recipes you can try over the holidays featuring some of our favorite spirits. Enjoy and please remember to always drink responsibly.

Baileys Minty Mistletoe

2 oz. Baileys® Original Irish Cream Liqueur
0.25 oz. Rumple Minze® Peppermint Schnapps

• Add Baileys Original Irish Cream and Rumple Minze.

• Shake with ice and strain into martini glass.

Hot Gin Toddy

1.25 oz. Tanqueray® London Dry Gin

0.75 oz. Fresh lemon juice

0.75 Ginger syrup

3 dashes Orange bitters

1.5 oz. Hot water

• Mix ingredients in a tall, clear glass coffee mug.

• Stir.

• Top with hot water.

• Garnish with fresh grated cinnamon.

The Harvest

1 oz. Captain Morgan® Original Spiced Rum

1 oz. Cranberry juice

0.25 oz. Fresh lime juice

4 oz. Cola

1 Lime wedge

• In an ice filled Collins or rocks glass, combine all the ingredients.

• Stir to blend.

• Garnish with a lime wedge.

[thebar.com]

Team GAP ProMO: Supporting Men's Health This Movember

CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT TEAM GAP PROMO

In the month of October, we put together a program that supported the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. It was our way of promoting breast cancer awareness within our company, and hopefully for our customers as well.

This month, GAP hopes to “change the face of Men’s Health”. Taken straight from the Movember website, that vision encompasses overall men’s health, as well as prostate and testicular cancer.

Several GAP team members are setting aside their razors to help raise awareness and receive donations in support of programs put forth by The Movember Foundation, Prostate Cancer Foundation, and the Livestrong Foundation.

That’s right…we’re going to adorn our upper lips with the fanciest of moustaches (or ‘MO’s) to support the cause!

At GAP, we love a healthy challenge, and we are participating with other agencies at Movember.com. So, if you’re in a giving mood, or would like to find out more information to support our cause, you can also go directly to our team page at http://moteam.co/gap-promo

If you’re as enthusiastic about Movember as we are, check out what Foster’s is doing for the entire month. As an official partner with the Movember Foundation, Foster’s is promoting the cause with limited addition Oil Cans. Collect all 3!

Make sure to keep checking our team page and GAP's Twitter and Facebook for updates!

Think Pink! October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

This month, ‘pink’ is everywhere. It’s on coffee cups, t-shirts, bumper stickers, our favorite NFL player’s jersey; even the White House is pink! National Breast Cancer Awareness Month takes place every October to increase awareness of the disease and the importance of early detection.

In 1985, the American Cancer Society and the pharmaceutical division of Imperial Chemical Industries launched National Breast Cancer Awareness month to promote mammography as the most effective weapon in the fight against breast cancer.  The Pink Ribbons, we so often see now, came about in the fall of 1991, when the Susan G. Komen Foundation handed out medals with pink ribbons during a race for breast cancer survivors. In 1993, Evelyn Lauder of the Estee Lauder Companies founded the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and established the Pink Ribbon as its official symbol.

The National Cancer Institute estimated that roughly 1 in 8 women will develop Breast Cancer in their lifetime; most of us know someone who has been affected by this disease.  In 2011, there were more than 2.6 million breast cancer survivors in the United States. We are happy to have an opportunity to support this important cause.

This October, GAP Promotions, along with many other organizations will be promoting Breast Cancer Awareness.  GAP is offering a wide array of promotional products, as seen below, including pink t-shirts, pink sunglasses, travel cups, and other items to help “Pink” your brand and help spread awareness.  Ten percent of all proceeds from our October Pink Initiative will be donated to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Contact Erin Murray to order or call 978.281.0083.

Pink Sunglasses

Double Wall Tumbler

Pink Ribbon Shirt

[BreastCancer.org] [Susan G. Komen] [National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.]

Whiskey 101

Whiskey lovers are a passionate group of people. They take their whiskeys very seriously and truly enjoy everything that goes into crafting their favorites. Whiskey lovers also like to talk about whiskey, including what distinguishes whiskey from whisky, Bourbon from whiskey, Scotch from Bourbon, and so on. This may be daunting to some, so we’ve summarized some of the basic differences among the most popular styles of whiskey, and identified a few of our favorites.

First, “whiskey” (with an “e”) and “whisky” are the same in terms of product.  Some argue that the difference in spelling is a regional attribute, while others assert that the spelling reflects the type of whisk(e)y in question. In most cases, whiskeys from Ireland and the United States have the “e,” while elsewhere in the world the “e” is omitted.  But, like everything else, there are exceptions to the rule.

Bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is Bourbon. To be qualified as Bourbon, a set of legal standards must be met, the most important of which requires that the product be manufactured in the United States. Also, Bourbon must be manufactured with at least 51% corn in the grain during distillation.

Scotch is the shortened term for Scotch whisky. Like Bourbon, Scotch is defined by a set of legal standards. The most important (and perhaps most obvious) standard is that it has to be manufactured and distilled in Scotland.

The different types of whiskey do not end there. Corn, malt, rye, and wheat whiskeys all have distinct flavors based on which ingredient is most prominent. Single malt whiskey is produced at a single distillery and the flavor may differ across all batches. Blended whiskey is a combination batch from different distilleries, which keeps the flavor more consistent.

GAP Promotions is proud to provide innovative marketing solutions to some of the most well-known whiskey brands, including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Bushmills, and 

Evan Williams. Pictured below is a display for one of our favorite whiskeys; a wooden rack that GAP produced for Bulleit Bourbon. The rack stands slightly over five feet, and features a rustic, wooden construction to display Bulleit’s rich frontier history.

[http://chuckcowdery.blogspot.com/]   [straightbourbon.com/]   [http://www.scotch-whisky.org.uk/] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blended_malt_whisky]

The Beers of Summer

Summer is here! After a long, messy winter and rainy spring, the heat is long overdue and completely welcome. It’s finally time to enjoy the outdoors and unwind with a refreshing summer brew from your favorite brewing company. Or perhaps you’d like to try something new this season. If you’re feeling adventurous, pack your cooler with one (or more) of these delicious summer beers:

Blue Moon Agave Nectar Ale – This beer, naturally sweetened with agave nectar and balanced with white wheat, is sure to become a favorite on hot summer nights.

Old Dominion Beach House Golden Pilsner – As the name suggests, this crisp brew, made with natural ingredients, is perfect for any beach outing.

Wachusett Summer Ale – Available from April until September, this super refreshing wheat ale with a hint of lemon is perfect for any outdoor event – and, since it’s in stores for longer than traditional summer seasonals, you’ll have plenty of chances to enjoy it!

Rogue American Amber Ale – A true patriot’s beer, this amber ale is a fantastic choice when celebrating our great nation on the Fourth.

Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy – A trailblazer in the recent Shandy craze, this beer infused with lemonade is the perfect companion for a day on the golf course.

And if you want to go with a trusted favorite, Red Stripe and Yuengling Light Lager are crowd-pleasers at any backyard barbecue.

All great beers need to be effectively merchandised in order to get the attention they deserve in the field. GAP Promotions has the perfect solutions to grab consumer attention and place your products ahead of the competition this summer (or any time of year).

The GAP Universal Merch Rack is incredibly versatile, allowing for easy customization. The rack itself holds bottles of various sizes, including standard six-packs and 22 oz. bottles, making it perfect for merchandising craft beer. If you want to accommodate more bottles on your rack, we offer the option of adding a fifth shelf or two side shelves. For more information, click here.

Here are some other display options that are set to hit the market this fall:

For more information on any of these merchandising solutions, or if you’d like to collaborate with GAP to create your own rack, contact Drew Murray at drew.murray @gappromo.com or 888.884.6427.

70th Annual WSWA Convention Wrap-Up

The GAP team recently exhibited at the 70^th Annual WSWA Convention in Orlando, making it our third consecutive appearance at the event. This year’s record-breaking attendance included about 2,300 beverage industry suppliers, service providers, and wholesalers looking to network and showcase their offerings to the wine and spirits industry. Each year, GAP has been a standout in promotional products and custom displays at the convention, and beverage industry leaders have taken notice.

Frozen pouch cocktails were one of the hottest categories at the WSWA Convention, and GAP has become the go-to supplier for innovative pouch display solutions. Frozen pouch cocktails have been gaining popularity steadily since last summer, and GAP showcased its most popular pouch solutions at the show, garnering substantial attention from convention-goers. Click here for pricing and spec information for the pouch racks that were displayed at the show.

Another trend evident at the show was the experimentation with new and innovative styles of liquor, including hard water, milk vodka, and sweet potato vodka. In fact, the convention marked the United States market launch of XB (bottled cocktails) and Blue Chair Bay Rum, which is sponsored by musician Kenny Chesney.

The convention opened and closed with extremely inspiring keynote speakers. Terry Bradshaw kicked off the show with a speech about the importance of being happy and trusting the talents and skills of those with whom you surround yourself because you can’t succeed on your own. Barbara Corcoran closed the show with an energetic and comedic speech about how hard work, perseverance, and taking chances got her to where she is today. She mentioned that she is “good at failing,” in that she never makes the same mistake twice and that she can trace all of her successes back to a time when she failed.

Overall, it was an extremely successful and fun convention for GAP, and the team is already looking forward to next year! Check out some images from the show below!

[WSWA]