Alton's Purple Endorsement
So: I saw this not long ago and thought it was my imagination. Looks like Chowhound readers did too!
Here's someones take on it; but I find Serious Eaters to have much better opinions btw
Or link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMxucKipC2U
Turns out it really "irks" the Creative Cooler.
- So Alton Brown walking around in a fake-looking, idealistic vineyard with a too-perfect looking chalkboard just feels jarringly wrong. I want him drawing and illustration or using some props to show me about polyphenals and antioxidants, not just checking off generic terms on a preplanned chalkboard. They used the perfect celebrity spokesperson, but left a huge chunk of the celebrity spokeperson's individual style.
What do you guys think?
Great idea, poor execution? C'mon Alton Hearters lets hear it!!
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20 Comments:
poor execution. The first time I saw it I didn't recognize it was Alton, as he was in his long hair combed back phase. So the benefit of Alton endorsing Welch's wasn't really there. Probably lots of people thought "who the hell's that?" It doesn't run very often.
lemonfair at 3:33PM on 09/11/09
I cringe every time I see it, comes so close to making a charicature out of him and is just sort of stupid, in my opinion, but a man's gotta make a living. Can't blame him for grabbing the brass ring as it comes around. btw, its been running for months, you just seeing it for the first time?
spiceweasel at 4:00PM on 09/11/09
@spiceweasel: well up here in Canada we're just a little behind LOL i swear i just saw it. when I started looking into it I thought: how come I've never heard of this?
Like: winter of '08 or something!?!?
I do agree that it just doesn't seem like "alton"; more what Welsh's thought foodies thought of him--almost a mockery. if that makes sense. charicature's a good term
hungrychristel at 4:04PM on 09/11/09
That commercial bugs me. When a trusted authority starts pushing products commercially, it makes me wonder what else they're shilling. Like, I suspect he's getting paid by Shun to promote their knives, but on his cooking show, does he really prefer one ingredient over another or is he just getting paid to say so?
yayfood at 4:11PM on 09/11/09
i do admit that i bought some after seeing alton shilling for it. mostly because i haven't drunk it since i was very small and had kind of forgotten about it. so i figured i'd give it another go after all these years. it was pretty tasty & better for you than a softdrink, but then again i haven't bought any since. still love alton tho.
gastronomeg at 4:29PM on 09/11/09
Which Ad are we talking here the grape juice one?
pjracz10 at 5:25PM on 09/11/09
@pjracz10- yes this one
I tried to embed it in the post by I dont think it meets SE submission standaards
what other ones are there?
hungrychristel at 5:57PM on 09/11/09
@ yayfood, well put, it sort of bugged me that he gave away his credibility to hawk some grape juice, if he has to give himself away, make it for something worthy.
spiceweasel at 9:51PM on 09/11/09
I find it very upsetting to waste his talents, His personailty is just crushed with the product. But what are you do to? He has a wife and daughter. Anyone would be a idiot these days to throw away free money.
Pinupgirl4ever at 2:28AM on 09/12/09
you guys may think i;m a dork but I bought grape juice for the first time in my life - if alton promos it i will buy it
labrown13 at 12:33PM on 09/12/09
What's wrong with grape juice? If he's going to advertise a product, at least he's choosing something that's healthy. Frankly I thinks it's kind of yummy.
Jeremiahc at 1:26PM on 09/12/09
It's a Welch's commercial and not an episode of Good Eats... just because he's on the screen doesn't mean it'll be directed in the same manner. He doesn't have crazy props on Iron Chef America. I think he's a great spokesman, but there's definitely a better way to use his talents.
I love grape juice and I never paid much attention to the health aspects (it's juice it must be healthy). I think it's good that he's earning his share with respectable products instead of fast food/diet coke.
gingercookiewithlime at 6:54PM on 09/12/09
@gingercookiewithlime - Good point. Anyone seen Tom Colicchio shilling for Diet Coke?
mollykate678 at 7:17PM on 09/12/09
Alton's a great guy. Have watched him for years, own some of his books and continue to be amazed by his talent.
However for those who don't watch the Food Network, people don't really know him. He's yet to jump into the mainstream media. With the exception of his books and I don't think he's got a restaurant like Bobbie, Mario and Symon. Nor the name like Giada. Nor his own national talk show aka Rachael.
The commercial interest regardless of the product, will help him draw additional coverage. Thus open up some additional opportunities for him.
I wish him well. Would be nice to see him on a few of the major network shows.
Ribster at 4:45AM on 09/13/09
I thought the product was a great match for Alton. Grape juice is very, very, good for us.
The biggest problem was both the directing that the fact they got Alton in a "looking weird" phase. A little pudgy and that funny hair.
lemonfair at 8:24AM on 09/13/09
Grape juice is very, very good for us? I thought it was chock-full of unnecessary sugar and lacking the fiber (and other nutritional components) of just eating grapes. I'm seriously not trying to snark or be mean with my questioning, @lemonfair. I'm just surprised at that statement, because I wrote fruit juices off a long time ago as being 'so-not-worth-it.'
mollykate678 at 12:07PM on 09/13/09
He's only giving away his credibility if he's saying something false, or that's clearly more spin than truth, or if he's simply not believable (i.e., Tom Collichio shilling Diet Coke "just for the taste of it;" I think Collichio thought that commercial would look more like parody than it does).
Grape juice has a lot of sugar and doesn't have the fiber of grape skins, but it is full of polyphenol antioxidants, it doesn't spoil in the fridge, and compares favorably to non-diet soft drinks in moderation. You shouldn't replace water with grape juice, but I don't think AB or anyone else is advocating that.
There's no time in a 30-second ad for Good Eats-style puppets or giant antioxidant molecules, but it would have been better had they commissioned him to make a series of Web videos in that style to go with the commercials. I watched his Web videos for GE's smart ovens and was impressed by the technology and his presentation, even while it was entirely obvious it was a paid ad for something he wasn't going to use on Good Eats (because most people don't have ovens smart enough to vary cooking methods to get frozen lasagnas done in half the time).
I thought Collichio's ad sacrificed some of his credibility, but I thought AB's ad was just a mild and truthful endorsement. I guess it comes down to the idea that I believe AB believes everything he said about grape juice, but I don't believe Collichio drinks Diet Coke "just for the taste of it." I'm just waiting for him to tell some cheftestant that his or her dish tastes "chemical" to have a great belly laugh.
mdeatherage at 4:45PM on 09/13/09
Uh, this is just Alton Brown we're talking about here right?! It's not as though he's endorsing canned ravioli. We're talking about grape juice for the love of pete! There are far worse things he could be hawking, such as evoo with his face on it (yummo), or some awful spaghetti sauce, spice mix, etc....
I don't believe I have ever seen him endorse any product on his show. Take ritz crackers for instance, he'll say "you know what they are" without mentioning the name. Or "zip top" bags instead of ziplock.
Come on people, let AB make a few bucks. I'll have a different opinion of the guy if his face shows up on a box of chicken broth like someone else I've seen (*cough, cough, Bull$#!%, cough*).
Pavlov at 2:38PM on 09/15/09
I was surprised to see him endorsing this too. But like everyone else has said above...it could be worse. He could be selling cast iron pans that crack and shatter when you use them. : )
arm1970 at 2:58PM on 09/15/09
Full disclosure: My family only likes original Welch's grape juice because it has a more robust grape taste than any other brand. Plus, the kids get Welch's sparkling juice on all major holidays and at any family gathering when the adults have wine or champagne.
Alton can do no wrong, in my mind. He's the best home ec teacher I ever had. I have learned so much from him about the science of cooking and baking--he did all the testing and the research, but I get all the glory when I use his recipes for popovers and pickles and crockpot overnight steel-cut oatmeal. . .All those wasted years struggling to keep the heat low enough long enough to keep the McCann's from scorching but getting them cooked all the way through.
I have a hard time thinking of Alton as a shill. I'm sure he thought long and hard about his image/brand before saying "yes" to Welch's. Paula Deen, on the other hand, with her line of baked goods at Wal-Mart--well, it's pretty bad when people are too lazy to make her recipe for gooey butter cake (which starts with a cake mix, for heaven's sake), but buy it fully prepared from Wal-Mart instead.
Martha, Ina, Paula, Rachael, Giada, Bobby, Mario, Emeril, Sandra--be it food products or equipment, they've all tried to get me to buy something with their name and photo on it. And I have, from Mario's jarred sauce to Martha's sheets. Mario, Ina and Alton (and a pinch of Martha) are the only personalities I trust with my money.
betteirene at 3:53PM on 09/19/09