Coley Porter Bell has worked with Beefeater to create the proposition, name and packaging for a brand new hand-crafted gin.
Burrough's Reserve is produced by Beefeater's Master Distiller, Desmond Payne, using the original Beefeater recipe from the 1860s and is distilled by hand using Burrough's original copper 'Still Number 12.' The spirit is then uniquely rested in Jean de Lillet oak barrels, resulting in a remarkable transformation and imbuing the gin with the subtle characteristics of the oak and residual Jean de Lillet; a look of liquid gold and a deeply complex taste with an unrivalled character.
Coley Porter Bell worked with Beefeater to develop the overall concept, the structural and graphical designs, as well as creating brand guidelines and developing the name for the new product.
The packaging is largely a metaphor for the way the gin is produced. The rounded glass structure and the label shape evoke the ends of the Jean de Lillet oak barrels in which it is rested. The solid decanter-style bottle shows off the exquisite colour of the liquid, while its shallow profile allows light to refract off the edges of the embossed wreath of botanicals that also acts as a frame for the label. The structure and its intricate crafting play a major role in conveying the brand's ultra premium status and sophisticated character.
The label also emphasises the hand-produced, small-batch nature of Burrough's Reserve, with the signatures of both James Burrough (the originator of the recipe) and Desmond Payne (the creator of the product), alongside the batch and bottle number.
The colour palette and textures also reflect the gin's unique production; copper to reference the still, a wooden stopper to reference the oak barrels and red to acknowledge its Beefeater provenance.
The accompanying copper carton creates impact on shelf and exudes craft with its intricate decoration of botanicals surrounding the bottle silhouette, while a die cut allows the bottle label to show through.
"We are exceptionally proud to have produced this beautiful packaging for Burrough's Reserve; a product that breaks new ground in the world of gin," commented Stuart Humm, Creative Director at Coley Porter Bell. "We wanted to create something that balances the ultra premium codes often found in dark spirits, for example hand craftsmanship and cues of discernment and status, with the world of gin and Beefeater. We set out to create a new category and to appeal to free thinkers who aren't bound by convention. To this end, we have fully achieved our aim."