This is a lovely image of two glasses of Cerveza Imperial, one of our very favorite beers. Looks good, right?
And this is a significantly less lovely image of a bad bottle of Imperial.
See the funk floating on the bottom? Ew.
So, imagine our panic as we were about to enjoy a beer...and were denied by the funk! And yes, all 12 we had on hand were like that. Needless to say, there was much wringing of hands and rending of garments. After we uncurled from our fetal position, we shot that picture. And first thing Monday, you best believe we fired off an email to Imperial's U.S. distributor, Black Eagle Imports.
BLACK EAGLE: (8:49 AM) "We are very sorry; this looks like product which is out of code and most likely that is was not stored properly.
Please return to the store you purchased and we will make sure there is fresh product there for your exchange.
Best regards and again we are very sorry the inconveince."
Four-minute response time? With a promise to make it right? Not bad. Not bad at all. But Black Eagle doesn't do "not bad." They do "kick-ass." So a few hours later, we get another message saying: "Black Eagle Imports has sent you a package." We haven't gotten the package yet, but we're going to assume it isn't ticking. They didn't have to do that. That's kick ass. Don't think we didn't notice.
But wait, there's more. A little later, we get a personal call from the rep, who tells us he's made sure there is fresh product waiting for us at the store - just return the bad stuff so they can strap it to a Titan III rocket booster and shoot it into the very heart of an imploding neutron star millions of light years from Earth.
Oh, and we got the beer no problem. And no funk.
But that's not all! Today, we get yet another note from Black Eagle, apologizing for us " ...not (being) able to enjoy a cold Imperial when you wanted to." (Well, it was traumatic.)
The moral of the story? Everything You Do Affects Your Audience's Perception Of You. We liked Imperial before. Now, we love it beyond reason. All because we feel taken care of - by a distributor. It wasn't that hard - just the cost of a few beers and a few minutes. But a little good will goes a long way. Especially when there's beer involved. Gracias, amigos. Pura Vida!
