Auston Design Group teamed up with Bronze Creative to develop the branding for this new entry into the rapidly growing specialty rum category. Marauda, Spanish for marauder, is in reference to the rum loving pirates that prowled the Caribbean Sea in the 18th and 19th centuries. The brand is targeted to aspirational consumers who have cut their teeth on lower quality rums and are looking to experience a higher quality and more mature product. The package design combines custom bottles, screen-printing and pressure sensitive labels. Lot numbers, along with sequentially numbered bottles from each batch, reinforce the hand-crafted, small-batch nature of this rum. A limited production wax-dipped launch bottle was created as an introduction gift to distributors and key accounts.

International Beer Week (2/10 – 2/19) was the perfect time for Sierra Nevada to introduce the extension of Pale Ale as its first foray into cans. Auston Design Group has been working with the creative department at the brewery for the past year to extend the Pale Ale branding to cans and the twelve-pack carton. Sierra Nevada saw the expansion to cans as a great opportunity to make the Pale Ale more portable. Auston Design Group was asked to explore a broad range of solutions, ranging from very close in, to radical departures from the existing look and feel of the brand. A collection of the strongest of these concepts was put before focus groups. After much thought and consideration based on the learnings from the focus groups, as-well-as gut instinct, the brewery chose to stay true to the current Sierra Nevada Pale Ale graphics. We are proud to have been a part of this expansion, and are excited to enjoy these pale ale’s in the wild. Below are some concepts from the range that was originally presented to the brewery.

With hundreds of different brands fighting for attention on store shelves, wine is one of the most competitive consumer goods in the world. The Auston Design Group team is proud of its ability to create wine brands that sell. The studio is responsible for the branding and package design of a number of top selling brands. Following is a look at some of our top performers from 2011.

Gnarly Head: #1 selling Zinfandel brand in the world
In 2011 the Auston Design Group designed wine brand, Gnarly Head, became the #1 selling Zinfandel SKU in the world. The brand was launched in 2003 and has shown steady growth with each consecutive vintage. Originally designed as an Old Vine Zinfandel brand, the winery has expanded it to include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay. Zinfandel continues to be responsible for the bulk of the brand’s sales. Gnarly Head has received both Impact Databank’s, Hot Brand award and Beverage Dynamics “Fast Track Brand” award for the past five years consecutively, and was included in Wines and Vines magazine’s 2009 & 2010 “Top 30 Momentum Brands” list.

Mark West Pinot Noir: #1 selling Pinot Noir in the United States
2011 also saw Mark West Pinot Noir become the number one selling single SKU of Pinot Noir in the U.S. Since the 2005 brand redesign by Auston Design Group the brand has grown steadily from 30,000 cases to well over 500,000 cases annually.

Vigilance: #1 selling wine brand at BevMo!
Vigilance is sold exclusively through the BevMo! chain and in 2011 became their number one selling wine brand chain-wide. This Auston Design Group developed brand concept was launched in 2008 with the initial production of 8,000 cases. It has since surpassed 50,000 cases.

Chariot Gypsy: a top performer at Trader Joe’s
Chariot Gypsy is sold exclusively through the Trader Joe’s grocery chain. Aside from Two-Buck-Chuck, Gypsy was one of Trader Joe’s top selling wines in 2011. In 2010 the brand showed an amazing spike with sales well over 200,000 cases; growth of more than 300% over 2009 figures.

Einstök Doppelbock is a limited-edition seasonal release that provides the ideal ale for celebrating the holidays. Malted barley, notes of chocolate and caramel sweetness make this the perfect ale to go along with most hardy winter fare. Because of the limited-edition nature of the product, Auston Design Group, took a lighter approach to the label design and had a little fun with our badass viking, because after all, it is beer and beer should be fun…right? Einstök Doppelbock is available at Harvey Nicols, in the UK and in liquor stores across Iceland.

With its highly anticipated launch at Harvey Nichols, London last month, Einstök represents the first Icelandic craft beer brand to be exported from the island nation. The new brand has been received with much excitement by consumers, as-well-as the trade. There is a strong curiosity surrounding Iceland’s first craft beers, and we are happy to report that they are receiving positive reviews. The brand is slated to hit the U.S. market in the first months of 2012.

Einstök is an Icelandic word meaning “unique”, which is fitting as the country was originally settled by Vikings and rests on the edge of the Arctic Circle. Like other northern European countries that endure long hard winters shrouded in darkness, the Icelandic culture is earnest and efficient. This characteristic is evidenced in their history of a clean and minimal approach to design. The Einstök branding and label design are an effective representation of this northern European mind-set. The bold sparseness of the package lends itself to strong billboarding on shelf, which makes it stand out like a beacon in the highly competitive beer aisle.

Einstök is distributed in the UK by Love Drinks, London. The beer labels were expertly reproduced by Guidotti Centro Stampa in Lucca, Italy. The simple design is very cost efficient to print with only 2 to 3 colors per label.

After completing the wine label design, Auston Design Group provided structural and graphic design for luxury cases that house Darioush Winery’s most revered and exclusive wine, Darius II Cabernet Sauvignon. The subtle and minimalist design reinforces the ultra luxury status of this tier and evokes the very essence of Darioush Winery’s brand image: chic, sophisticated, and understated – the epitome of elegance.

The cases were beautifully produced via Influence Communications, a specialty printing, packaging and POS company based in beautiful Oakland, California. Our thanks to Chris Hundley and Bill Brown for maintaining the highest standards and helping us see the project through to fruition.

Every now and then a great project with a great cause finds its way to our door, and most recently it was Heslet Honey Co. of San Francisco. Because we believe in the cause and appreciate the forward thinking and dedication of beekeeper, Kate McGee, we took on the branding and packaging of this start up on a pro bono basis.

Heslet Honey is comprised of two beehives located on the lush and verdant east facing slope of San Francisco’s Telegraph Hill. Kate tends the hives, harvests and hand crushes the honey, strains, packages and sells it… this is a truly handcrafted product.

Our approach to branding this honey was to take great care in not over designing or over packaging it. The somewhat home-spun and vintage look of the label is intended to reflect the design aesthetics of the 1940’s, when the brand’s namesake, Valetta Heslet and her mother, transformed Telegraph Hill’s public right of ways from garbage dumps to beautiful gardens. The master label art is black on white and set up to be photocopied to craft paper. It is hand trimmed and applied with a glue stick.

Visit heslethoney.com to learn more about this important pilot program that utilizes public right-of-ways to provide urban agriculture in the city.

Bee Keeper, Kate McGee, at her hive in the Greenwich Street right-of-way.

New Pinot-centric brand, Bailiwick, just finished its maiden printing and is looking delicious. Their only white wine is a California Vermentino (shown below with the four Pinot’s during printing QC at the press check).

The concept features a venn diagram of overlapping circles. Each circle represents the strength and experience each of the two owners, brothers Paul & Bryan Vais, bring to this new enterprise. Where the circles overlap represents the strength of the partnership, their Baliwick. There is a different color combination for each of the four Pinot Noirs produced by Baliwick Wine Co.

The labels were beautifully printed by label printers, Tapp Technologies, in their new Napa plant. They were digitally reproduced on their HP digital off-set press, and finished off-line with an embossed texture and debossed brandmark.

Auston Design Group recently completed this redesign for the 2010 Dry Creek Vineyard Fumé Blanc. The new design draws inspiration from lithographic art prints of the early 20th century which many consider the golden years of yacht racing and the America’s Cup. The package was designed to compete at the $12 and under category with an emphasis on quality cues that would have it perceived as a much more expensive wine. The new package has been very well received by both consumers and the trade. And for good reason, it’s a great value, a great package and the wine is delicious. www.drycreekvineyard.com

Thanks to Cameo Crafts of Sonoma for doing an amazing job with the pre-press and the printing of this label. This was not an easy one to print with 4 color process, 3 spot colors, emboss, deboss and a persnickety designer on press.

Iceland’s first craft brew, Einstök Olgerđ, is about to reach the shores of North America for the first time. Auston Design Group developed the branding and package design for this new high-end luxury import. Einstök will launch a White Ale, Pale Ale and Toasted Porter this fall, with a winter brew arriving just in time for the holidays. Einstokbeer.com.

We are excited to see that the current Bevmo 5¢ sale catalog, features four
brands on the front and back covers designed by Auston Design Group.

Brands: Vigilance, Gnarly Head, Irony, Beauzeaux.

noAH IX presents its most extraordinary collection of international
packaging work to date. The book shows a stunning assortment of the
best package design from around the world.

An article written by Tony Auston for Wine Business Monthly.