Rutte Throws Epic House Party at Tales of the Cocktail

Red solo cups, flowing Gin & Tonics, pizza delivery, and a live performance by old-school hip-hop legend Cam’ron.

Rutte Distillateurs – one of the smallest distilleries in the Netherlands with over seven generations of distilling – stepped out of the box and threw the house party of all house parties on Friday, July 23rd, 2016 to close out their Tales of the Cocktail activations this year. An old school hip hop party is out of the norm for the Dutch brand, however, giving consumers what they want is completely on brand, and old school hip-hop is what they wanted. The line began forming outside of the venue before 8pm as TOTC goers were eager to get inside.

The #RutteHouseParty featured live music from old school hip-hop legend, Cam’ron, and sounds by DJ Nick Vantiel. The G&Ts were flowing with a build your own G&T station where guests could choose from herbs, garnishes, and tinctures to craft their own personalized G&T. A photo booth by Phhhoto projected GIF images of attendees on large screens all over the venue, and ping pong tables were available for a house party feel.

Following a DJ set by DJ Nick Van Tiel, Cam’ron’s performance began around 11pm to a full crowd at New Orlean’s popular music venue, Republic. Party goers crowded in front of the stage, waving their hands up and down and singing along to the music with Rutte red solo cups in hand. Cam’ron, who is releasing his first album since 2009 this fall, ended his performance with his hit song “Hey Ma” and thanked the crowd before exiting the stage.

Marc De Kuyper, Brand President and 11th Generation De Kuyper on the party activation:

Why did you decided to take this direction for your large party activation?

We decided to go in the direction of an old-school hip hop house party because this is what resonated with the trade, it was relatable, reminiscent, and fun. It wasn’t something completely typical or expected of our brand. Booking Cam’ron was a no brainer – he’s a legend in the world of old school hip-hop and an artist the trade was excited about. Overall, the party was a great success.

What is your idea of a perfect house party?

A perfect house party should start with great music and great people. This will set the vibe for the night. You then need good drinks that everyone will enjoy or can make their own. A combination of all of these things will make your guests want to stay all night. These are all things we kept in mind when conceptualizing our party. We also made sure to keep it low key and casual, with our family and friends, we didn’t want a huge, flashy party.

What did you put in your Gin & Tonic at the Make Your Own G&T Station?

I love the Rutte Celery Gin with aromatic rosemary, orange peel zest, the sarsaparilla tincture, and mixed with Mixwell tonic.

For more information on Rutte, visit RutteSpirits.com.