The Austrian town of Rankweil enjoys a picture post-card setting, particularly in January when the Alpine mountains surrounding it are covered with snow, providing an imposing and dramatic backdrop. Situated in the extreme west of Austria, in the district of Feldkirch, Rankweil's population of just under 12,000 inhabitants are a hard working, industrious people, carving out a living from tourism, agriculture and local industries. They are rightly proud of their achievements for it includes, among other things, being home to the world's production of Red Bull. All 2.5 billion cans of it annually.

When Dietrich Mateschitz walked into the offices of Rauch, Rankweil's fruit drink producer, and asked if they would kindly make a small production run of his new Red Bull drink in 1987, it is little wonder that the Rauch family wondered at the wisdom of switching a production line over for an unheard of product. An 'energy drink'. Mateschitz, though, was determined and convincing. Almost 20 years later the Rauch facility fairly hums along with its Red Bull production lines each firing out 90,000 cans an hour. Or if you prefer, 25 per second.

During my three month sojourn at Red Bull Racing following its takeover of Jaguar Racing I enjoyed a visit to Rauch's Rankweil headquarters, principally to tie up the terms of a team sponsorship, but also to take in a visit to Red Bull's production lines. In typical Red Bull fashion this was no half-hearted affair. My guides were none other than Roland Concin, head of operations, and Peter Huls, head of engineering and technology - both part of Mateschitz's Red Bull 'family' since the early days. Huls, an Austrian wine maker, was the person invited by Mateschitz to develop Red Bull's energy drink in order to make it appeal to the western palette.

To see the production lines of a product which has become a global phenomenon in terms of brand development and product marketing makes you understand how impressive Mateschitz's achievement has been. The giant warehouse sitting alongside the factory, with its container loads of drinks ear-marked for world markets, is buzzing, its own railroad terminal a hive of activity as the freight is prepared for its journey to Bremerhaven and Hamburg.

Now owner of two Formula One teams, Mateschitz's arrival as one of the key players in the sport mirrors Red Bull's presence as the dominant consumer brand in Grand Prix racing. The scale of its investment is colossal, but if you consider that a can of Red Bull sells for around $2, total retail sales volume is around $5 Billion. It has been estimated that as much as one third of Red Bull's total marketing budget of $700 Million is being ploughed into Formula One.

As a marketing executive for German company Blendax, later acquired by Proctor & Gamble, Mateschitz was responsible for marketing products as diverse as toothpaste and shampoo. Stints at Unilever and Jacob's Coffee had also given him expertise in FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) marketing. It was while travelling in Asia that he came across a tonic drink owned by Thai businessman Chaleo Yoovidhya. Krating Daeng ('Red Water Buffalo') was a syrupy tonic drink which had revitalizing properties, and once Mateschitz had developed his idea further it morphed into Red Bull with its unique, slim-line can, logo and taste. The partnership saw Yoovidhya and Mateschitz each take a 49% stake in the new business with the final 2% held in trust.

From the beginning Red Bull's marketing strategy was very simple. Get the product into people's hands, invest every dollar earned back into its promotion, use event-led sponsorships and clever product placement to drive the brand image home to consumers. Its investment in aviation sports, extreme sports and motor sport are well known. Individual markets are offered three major programmes to promote the brand - Flugtag, where amateurs get to build and demonstrate their own 'flying machines', Soap Box Derbys and the remarkable Can Art, an activity which sees people design the most amazing sculptures from, you guessed it, Red Bull cans. Widespread use of product placement in cool venues, among celebrity users and even in films (watch the after-party scene in Oceans 12) made Red Bull a must-have brand for the young and influential. Such has been the success of Red Bull's approach that traditional above-the-line advertising has been, and remains, peripheral to its central marketing.

When Red Bull first entered Formula One back in the early 1990s, everyone wondered how long it would last, for while the promotions girls driving their Red Bull Minis drew praise as well as admiring glances, the same could not be said of those who tasted the drink. Some people swear by it, many others just swear, but put that to a Red Bull executive and you'll get a rye smile. 'Ok,' they will say,' we know not everyone likes it. If we give four people Red Bull, two might not like it, a third only ever drink it if he or she wants a short energy boost, but the fourth will become a convert and drink Red Bull regularly. If we get everyone in the world to try it, a quarter of them will keep us very happy!' By last year Red Bull estimated that over 300 Million people had tried its product, so presumably that means 75 Million converts…

Interestingly Red Bull is never marketed as a mixer, for although Vodka Red Bull has become a staple for clubbers, Red Bull takes a purist route. It markets Red Bull as being the pure energy drink which it always has been. If people choose to mix it with something, that's their prerogative.