Custom bottle design
Branding and brand world creation
Packaging design
Label design
The Challenge
To design a bespoke bottle for a new Irish whiskey brand named after Ogham, the ancient form of writing.
The Brief
asked us to bring the Ogham alphabet to life in a modern, elegant, and historically respectful way.
Our Design Intent
was to use the bottle as a sort of sculpture – to form and shape it so that it would represent a miniature Ogham stone in and of itself. We decided to embody the visual and tactile elements of an Ogham stone in the shape of the bottle.
The bespoke logo and branding scheme we designed comprises two key elements: the wording itself – Ogham Irish Whiskey – and a graphical representation of an Ogham stone.
The lettering is an original, custom design. The primary word ‘Ogham’ has been given a type treatment to appear marked and deconstructed, in such a way that it represents the Ogham alphabet in a modern execution. This allows the text to be a visual representation of the word itself, while also being eye-catching and interesting. The words ‘Irish Whiskey’ beneath this receive a similar treatment, although it is slightly more subtle.
The graphical element is, of course, an Ogham stone. The silhouette of the tall standing stone is immediately recognisable, particularly with the subtle carving cut-out on the bottom left. Laid over the stone is a copper-coloured Ogham inscription. The colour is a nod to the copper stills used in the distillation process, and the inscribed letters are D and L – an homage to the initials of the 3 founders of Ogham Irish Whiskey; Dan Leavy, Donal Leavy, and Doug Leddin.
The overall execution of this piece is minimal, but it packs a lot of meaning. The colour palette has earthy, moody influences inspired by the history of the Ogham stones, while also including the rich copper colours synonymous with distillation. The inclusion of the founders’ initials gives the logo a lovely sense of context and a compelling brand story.
Overall, this is a logo that at first glance appears beautifully simple, but upon closer inspection reveals a series of interesting, unexpected elements and a wonderful combination of old and new.