Drinks branding and packaging design for an independent whisky bottler.

Involvement

• Brand identity
• Ideation
• Label design
• Packaging design
• Illustration

Creating the branding and packaging design for ‘The Character of Islay’ – an independent whisky bottler. Portraying the unique stories and legends of the region, through authentic label design and illustrations.

The design challenge

The Character of Islay is a charming drinks brand that aimed to offer something different to the Scotch market. However the branding needed to educate the consumer about the rich history of Islay, through authentic visuals and creative story telling. The overall brand needed to appear authentic and desirable to the experienced whisky drinker, while also creating intrigue to those new to the region.

The design solution

The design solution was to push the rich history of Islay through unique anagrams and design assets personal to each expression. Inspiration for the label design came from the bold cues of 1960s Scotch Whisky packaging. The overall logo design for ‘The Character of Islay’ combined a fingerprint into a map of Islay, which aimed to show the many different personalities of the island.

Each expression told a different story to engage the consumer. For example Aerolite Lyndsay has a bold, complex character profile with a liquid flavour of smouldering coal. This was shown through a dark colour palette and an illustration showing the dark waters of Port Charlotte. 

On the other hand the flavour profile of Fiona Macleod is bright and charming on the nose. This was represented by a much fresher design and a more elegant brand mark. As a result more space was introduced to the label, contrasted with block serif fonts to give it a more retro feel.