Aimed at 18- to 24-year-old lads, Hard Core launches next week and will be stocked initially at Asda supermarkets. The marketing will involve a sampling campaign at the Max Power Motor Show, where small glasses will be offered in the adult Club X arena, which is organised in conjunction with men's club Spearmint Rhino.
Alcohol charity Alcohol Concern has slammed the drink's positioning as "pornographic". Alcohol Concern assistant director Mary-Ann McKibben said: "The name Hard Core clearly has pornographic connotations. In addition, the promotional activity for the drink is very much playing on the sexual connotations of the name."
On Tuesday, the charity complained to The Portman Group and the secretary of state for culture Tessa Jowell. In a letter to Jowell, the charity said the case highlighted the need for government-led regulation on alcohol promotion instead of the voluntary code. It has also asked The Portman Group to remove Halewood from its list of code signatories.
Halewood has already had one complaint upheld against it, for a drink called Sorted, in autumn 2000. The Portman Group said it would investigate the complaint.
Brands manager Fran Draper said Halewood spotted a gap in the market for a PPS that is "less sickly" than current offerings.
She denied the strapline was connected with sexual prowess and said the firm didn't clear the marketing with The Portman Group because it didn't think the industry self-regulator would have a problem with it.
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