[-] Well, it's been 2.5 years since my last post. Busy-ness got the better of me - not much more to say there.

I am pleased, however, that interesting comments have continued to trickle in. I apologize that many were approved and posted belatedly. I dropped my old email account and forgot to update my blog profile.

Interestingly just a few weeks ago I received a renewed invitation from Twinings NA. Mr. Wayne Evans, a Vice President there, invited me over for a visit long ago, but I was unable to contact him to accept the offer. Last month, he invited me back, this time including his email address.

Dear Sir,

Forgive me if you thought my previous offer disingenuous and I apologise for not providing detailed contact information.

Again, please accept my invitation to join us at Twinings North America. I would personally like to join you in a cup of Earl Grey while explaining the Twinings approach to blending what we believe to be some of the finest teas in the world and discussing your concerns about our beloved Earl Grey.

Please email me at ***@twiningsusa.com to arrange a convenient time to meet.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Wayne Evans

I'm redacting his email address, because posting it would be a sure way to get his inbox inundates with spam (if it isn't already). But I figure I'll drop him a line and see what happens.

If he and I connect, I'll post the results. In the meantime, keep the comments coming.

Back at Long Last - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/8863197177287448337/comments/default

[-] I never got any direct response from Ruder Finn, but I checked the link today and they have withdrawn the page. I would have preferred a formal retraction or public apology, but I suppose they ascribe to the school of thought that PR folks never admit a mistake. See for yourself: http://www.ruderfinn.com/life-style/food-beverage/case-studies/response-to-save-twinings-blog.html. Since this will just take you to a 404 screen, check out my post on 12/29/07 for a snapshot of what was originally posted at that web address.

Interestingly, a some additional digging revealed that Ruder Finn is, or at least was, the lead PR firm for Twinings in the United States. On Sept 12 2005, it was announced that Ruder Finn was hired by Twinings specifically to tout Twinings' 300th Anniversary (which coincided with the rollout of new packaging, new flavors, and in my opinion, lower quality Earl Grey). Here is an excerpt from a press release:

"Ruder Finn impressed us with their knowledge of the tea market and the creativity of their concepts for such a significant anniversary," said Michael Cobb, marketing director for Twinings North America, Inc. "Their relationships with key media and the team's experience in the food and beverage industry will help increase awareness of Twinings as a leader in the tea arena. In addition, they have excellent experience delivering world-class corporate anniversary programs for a variety of clients."

See PRNewswire for the full press release.



Here is the email I sent to Ruder Finn, for those interested.

From: save twinings <> Mailed-By: gmail.com
To: rfnewyork@ruderfinn.com
Bcc: hopsona@ruderfinn.com, solomonh@ruderfinn.com, mail@ruderfinn.co.uk
Date: Dec 31, 2007 4:54 PM
Subject: False Statements on your website

Hi,

I am the owner/writer of a blog entitled Save Twinings (http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/). You reference my blog as a case study on your website, here: http://www.ruderfinn.com/life-style/food-beverage/case-studies/response-to-save-twinings-blog.html.

Your case study is incorrect. I have never visited Twinings, though I would be interested in doing so. I have not agreed I was mistaken - I maintain my suspicion that Twinings changed the formula of the tea. Finally, I have not stopped my campaign.

I would appreciate it if you post a correction to your website. If these statements were true, I wouldn't mind you using your work as a case study. They are, however, false, and I oppose the propagation of misinformation by any source, but particularly by public relations and advertising professionals.

thank you,
Save Twinings

Ruder Finn's Response - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/2340225395703295195/comments/default

[-] A PR Firm named Ruder Finn at some point posted a "case study" about their intervention with my blog. Apparently, they think I traveled to Twinings HQ, was convinced of the error of my ways, and stopped my campaign. And, of course, Ruder Finn wants to take credit for this magnificent PR maneuver. Unfortunately, it's just plain wrong.

You can find the site here: Ruder Finn: A Case Study in How to Screw up a PR Case Study

Here's a snippet - the relevant part not surrounded by the additional promotional stuff pasted all over their site, plus my handy calendar app showing the date and time I viewed the site (sorry, I know there are more sophisticated ways of time stamping a website).



NOTE (1/20/08): the web page has been pulled by Ruder Finn, but you can still find traces of it on Google 's cache.

The truth is no different than what I've already stated in this blog. I did receive a post on this blog from a VP at Twinings, just as Ruder Finn states. I was invited to visit Twinings HQ in New Jersey, which delighted me. However, I was given no contact info, and though I made attempts to connect with this VP, s/he made no further effort to connect with me. I was actually disappointed - I live close enough that a trip to Twinings could be a fun afternoon with the fam. But I moved on and assumed the invitation was disingenuous.

This begs several questions:

(a) Is Ruder Finn just shilling this story in an attempt to better sell themselves to the highest corporate bidder?

(b) Has Ruder Finn duped Twinings into paying for PR services rendered to supposedly change my mind?

(c) Has Ruder Finn been duped by someone pretending to be me--someone who went to Twinings HQ, said she had changed her mind and promised not to write negatively about Twinings any longer?

In any case, it looks like I need a PR ally on my side to set the record straight. Any recommendations?

p.s. Thanks to the anonymous tipster who clued me in to the Ruder Finn website.

SAVE TWININGS Has Become a Public Relations "Case Study" - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/2565425738074473292/comments/default

[-] That was the first sentence of a comment I received today. It is a great point, and one I have been meaning ot bring up for several days now.

On November 5, I posted comments I received from one Wayne Evans, a VP of Sales and Marketing at Twinings North America. He denied any changes to the Earl Grey blend, and invited me to visit the Twinings NA headquarters, so that they could "restore [my] faith in Twinings and further enhance [my] enjoyment of [their] teas."

At the time, I was optimistic that the offer was sincere. A family field trip to Twinings could be fun. That and an overly-developed sense of fairness motivated me to post his comments in full. However, it soon dawned on me that this fellow offered no contact information whatsoever. Was I supposed to print his comments out and carry them with me to the doorstep of Twinings NA? Maybe if I explained the situation to some random customer service representative they would be able to transfer me directly to his extension? So I invited Mr. Evans, via this blog, to contact me privately through email in order to set something up.

Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised that he has not responded. Once I posted his comments, his "friendly" message--and utter denial--was there for the world to see. His job as Marketer to the Masses was complete. Oh well, so I'm a dupe.

Meanwhile, comments continue to roll in from people who have noticed some change in their enjoyment of Twinings Earl Grey and have done a quick Google search to find out if they are alone. In fact, you are not. Thanks to all for writing in.

"What else would you expect a salesman to say to you?" - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/116629212363444441/comments/default

[-] My sister is no tea connoisseur. You'll see in "About Me" that I grew up on southern sweet tea. My sister did as well. Her interest in tea has never moved beyond that. So, though she's never said as much, I expect she thinks this little blog of mine is a bit quixotic.

Consequently, I was really touched this week when I opened a box from her and found... several boxes of Twinings tea (Earl Grey, of course) in the original packaging. Apparently, when I told her months ago of my frustration over the Twinings changes, she began scouring local groceries for the last remnants of the old tea. I suppose that in the South, where she now lives, stocks of Twinings and other fancy teas stay on the shelves longer than they do here in NYC.

Anyway, this week I was able to have a nice hot cuppa of Twinings Earl Grey from the original packaging. And I instantly noticed that the tea simply tasted better. Stronger, more flavor. A little bitter--which is good, and entirely lacking from tea out of the new packaging.

I still haven't undertaken more "scientific" testing, but this experience reassures me that the whole point of this blog remains valid. Further, comments continue to trickle in from all over the U.S. People take a sip of Twinings Earl Grey, and are so disappointed by the flavor that they do a little digging on Google to see if anybody else has had the same experience.

I still haven't heard back from Wayne Evans, the VP at Twinings who posted below. I hope the post was legit, and I do look forward to speaking with him more if he reaches out. I'll keep y'all posted.

A Gift from the Fam - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/116396743053576982/comments/default

[-] I have just received a comment from Wayne Evans, a VP at Twinings North America. Due to problems with Blogger, I haven't been able to get it posted as he originally submitted, but I'll paste it here in its entirety:

Dear Sir,
I read your blog with interest and thank you for your obvious passion for tea and for Twinings. As VP Sales and Marketing for Twinings NA I can assure you that we have made no changes to the Earl Grey blend. I note that you live in NYC and would like to extend an invitation to join us in our offices in New Jersey to discuss this further. We would welcome the opportunity to restore your faith in Twinings and further enhance your enjoyment of our teas.

And a response to Wayne: Thanks for your comment and your interest. I would be interested in a field trip to Jersey, so maybe we should connect more directly. You can email me at savetwinings (at) gmail (dot) com.

NOTE: See post dated 12/16/06 for a follow-up regarding the submission from Mr. Evans.

Response from Twinings - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/116278304051630800/comments/default

[-] Hello All,

Many apologies, but for the last few days, and possibly many more to come, Blogger is broken. For example, I have received a few comments that Blogger won't let me publish, and I can't add any comments of my own. So please check back in after a week or so. I want to hear what you have to say, and I have some thoughts of my own to share. And in the meantime, if you can complain to Google (which owns Blogger), that would be great too.

Sorry - Blogger is Broken - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/116278281786050109/comments/default

[-] I have yet to undertake further testing as recommended by a few of our astute contributors. I plan to do so, but I keep getting delayed. In the meantime, I thought I would humor you with a story of how I have come to cope with the weak flavoring of Twinings new Earl Grey.

The new blend is so weak, I have found, that no amount of steeping can overcome it. The upshot of this is that I can be profoundly lazy. Here's how I have turned the weak flavor into a strength that brings morning happiness.

Where I live, the summer has been hot and humid. I wake up each morning wanting something cold and crisp to quench the thirst that developed in the night. A warm cuppa simply won't do. I am very pleased, however, with the alternative I have developed. The night before, I throw a Twinings Earl Grey teabag in a mug with a bit of sweetener, pour boiling water over the top, and set it in the fridge to steep overnight. Yes, overnight. As I said, it will never in a million years steep too long to be palatable.

When I wake up in the morning, I remove the bag, give it a quick stir to wake up the sweetener, and chug it down as an ice-cold pick-me-up. It doesn't have a strong taste, but it does a nice job of quenching my thirst and washing away whatever muck collected in my mouth overnight.

On that note, goodnight all...

Go with its Strength: Accept its Weakness - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/115855419819482315/comments/default

[-] Work has kept me insanely busy, so I haven't had time to continue with more methodical tests of Twinings Earl Grey. But I do have an anectdote to offer...

This weekend, we had guests over for dessert, and served Twinings Decaf Earl Grey. This was a box fresh from the store, with the all new packaging. Our guests commented that the tea had very little flavor. The bergamot was there, but very little flavor of actual tea. My wife and I agreed. It's interesting that they brought it up without any prompting on our part.

Decaf Problems Too - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/115100830765677063/comments/default

[-] Though I have other pressing matters, with eager anticipation I've begun scientific testing to verify (or dismiss) my assertion that Twinings Earl Grey just doesn't seem to taste as good since they adopted the new packaging.

Test A, Part 1: Visual Inspection

Procedure: The first thing I did was brew two cups of tea, identical in all ways except that one contained a teabag from the "old" packaging (delivered to NYC via Pennsylvania), and one teabag from the new packaging. I picked identical mugs. I prewarmed both mugs. I measured the water before putting it in the mugs, to make sure the amount was identical. The water was piping hot, straight out of the electric kettle.

After 5 minutes of steeping, I removed both bags simultaneously. I then transferred the tea in the mugs to two clear glasses for observation.

Results: Inconclusive. I could not discern any noticeable difference between the two glasses. They appeared to have the same color and opacity. I intended to take a picture for posting here, but I remembered after starting the experiment that a friend has my digital camera.

Test A, Part 2: Blind Taste Test

My wife volunteered to do a blind taste test with these two glasses of tea. She is a better candidate than I. First, she hasn't spent any time on this website, so she could care less if I started this all over nothing. Second, she is a supertaster. This means she has an uncommonly strong sense of taste, particularly for bitter flavors. I, on the other hand, have a weak sense of taste and am generally unobservant when it comes to taste or smell. The fact that I perceived any difference in Twinings tea from one day to another is a minor miracle.

In any case, I carried the two glasses into the room where my wife was waiting. I knew what was in each glass, but she did not.

Results: Hypothesis confirmed! After two sips of each glass, she proclaimed that one glass tasted "good" and one glass tasted "bad." When I asked her to elaborate, she said the "bad" glass was extremely weak in flavor. Just to confirm results, I asked her if she had any preconceived notion about which glass would be the old tea and which was the new tea. She said she couldn't tell anything by looking at the glass, but she expected that the "good" tea would be the older tea.

So my wife confirmed my suspicions. She selected the "old" tea as the better tea, with a stronger flavor.

Interpretation: This experiment provides strong, but not fully conclusive, evidence, that Twinings Earl Grey tea in the new packaging is a weaker tea blend than the tea included in the previous packaging. My wife has provided independent confirmation that the old tea is indeed stronger and tastier than the new tea in my cabinet. One outstanding question is whether or not the new tea in my cabinet is somehow an "outlier." Is my new tea a "bad batch," an anomaly? I will have to test this question in my next experiment.

Scientific Results - Test A - http://savetwinings.blogspot.com/feeds/114790685111927578/comments/default