Edgy canned water company Liquid Death pitted its newest sparkling water flavors against some of the "most expensive beverages on Earth" in a blind taste test to see what they would prefer. The $1.99 Liquid Death Flavored Sparkling Water went up against "luxury beverages" up to 290 times the price in the form of liquefied Spanish squid ink, beluga caviar or Japanese Wagyu cheeseburger.
17 people were invited to participate in the blind taste test experience and the results speak for themselves. With this blind taste test challenge, the brand invites people not to take the word of strangers and "blindfold your closest friends and see which they prefer."
Although eating or drinking while blindfolded does have the potential to make a difference in flavor, this experiment goes to show that expensive doesn't always mean better.
Extreme Beverage Taste Tests
Liquid Death's Blind Taste Test Features Liquefied Luxury Foods
Trend Themes
1. Luxury Taste Test - Luxury brands can conduct taste tests with mass-market products to explore the potential for new markets or partnerships.
2. Disrupting the Beverage Industry - Affordable, edgy beverage brands can obtain mainstream recognition by leveraging product tests and marketing campaigns that position their products as trendsetters and challenger brands.
3. Perception Vs Reality - Craftily designed branding and packaging can help consumers overcome preconceptions about product quality, creating opportunities for new and innovative products to disrupt established markets.
Industry Implications
1. Food and Beverage - Taste tests can give insights into how different demographics perceive flavors and given them opportunities to create new products or PR campaigns.
2. Luxury Goods - Luxury brands can discover new potential customers by testing their flavors with mass-market products and using the feedback to launch new offerings or collaborations.
3. Marketing and Advertising - Testimonial campaigns, viral commercials, and branded content can leverage taste tests to reach untapped audiences and maximize the impact of novel products.