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InspirationGraphic Design

LOVE reveals a roaring new packaging design for BrewDog gin, LoneWolf

Manchester creative agency, LOVE, has unveiled its first packaging design for BrewDog since it signed an equity partnership deal with the brand earlier this year.

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Intricate blue and black wolf's head illustration on white BrewDog LoneWolf gin bottle label, showing fierce expression with detailed linework and teeth bared

The arrangement sees LOVE acknowledging the fast-moving, start-up nature of BrewDog by taking equity in return for reducing agency fees on all design work across the brand’s spirit business – BrewDog Distilling Co. The first product to launch under this umbrella is a rebrand of its existing gin brand, LoneWolf.

"In a crowded category, it was felt there was room for a gin big on attitude, reflecting both the heavy, uncompromising juniper profile of the liquid and BrewDog’s renowned punk attitude," said LOVE. "We were briefed to bring some bite back to a category which has undergone a proliferation of “delicate botanicals and floral language."

BrewDog needed a package design for LoneWolf which stands out from the crowd in an already saturated market: "It was only the aesthetic of LoneWolf doing the product a disservice," said LOVE.

The spirit itself is made from quality ingredients, with true craftsmanship at the core. Capturing this plus the iconic BrewDog attitude, LOVE brought LoneWolf to life through a fierce new illustration, inspired by the wolf artwork already present in BrewDog’s own distilling room.

LOVE worked with Californian based artist Bioworkz to create an intricately crafted, attention-grabbing wolf’s head design for maximum shelf and back bar stand-out. His unique style borrows from the world of steampunk, creating unique and ornate animal forms that are often used for tattoo designs and gig posters.

"BrewDog has this amazing giant wolf’s head fixed to the wall behind their spirits stills," said LOVE Creative Director David Palmer. "We saw an opportunity to echo that on the pack, a snarling entrant into a category becoming increasingly floral and pretty. The wolf’s head combined with bold typography and a pointy descriptor line ‘gin with bite’ completes the overhaul, creating something that is both unmistakable gin and unmistakably BrewDog."

For both LOVE and BrewDog, this is just the start. LOVE is working hard on the rest of the portfolio, which will include a rum, whisky and vodka product coming to supermarket shelves later this year. Watch this space.

Clear gin bottle with black cap featuring an intricate teal and copper wolf head illustration on white label, designed for BrewDog's LoneWolf gin
BrewDog LoneWolf gin bottle with LOVE's new packaging design featuring an intricately illustrated wolf's head in blue and black on white label
Three bottles of BrewDog LoneWolf gin with clear liquid and black caps, each featuring an intricate blue and black wolf head illustration on the label
Three BrewDog LoneWolf gin cans with metallic silver packaging featuring an intricate blue and black wolf head illustration by Bioworkz
Black and white wolf head illustration alongside its blue and bronze coloured version, both featuring intricate floral and geometric detailing
Detailed illustration of a fierce wolf's head with blue and brown ornamental patterning on a white LoneWolf gin bottle label
Large-scale mural of a fierce wolf head with bared teeth, flanked by copper pipes with flames, on an industrial building exterior
BrewDog LoneWolf gin bottle with black cap and label featuring an intricate blue wolf's head design against a textured grey background
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