The Approach

We took our initial inspiration from the beautiful landscape, flora and fauna of the Beara Peninsula. However, we were confident that we needed to present this landscape in a very modern and relevant manner. The bitters category is dominated by a 'medicinal/old world' design approach that tends to be overly ornate and elaborate. Bear Bitters is a brand new product that will primarily live in cocktail bars and restaurants, and as such, we opted for a more premium, contemporary, and ingredients lead design. The approach used a natural-colour driven illustration style with a modern form and symmetry which, when presented alongside other bitters, achieves greater standout across the competitor set.

The Execution

The logotype is rooted in local heritage, giving the brand a classic look and feel, with a nod to old-world Ireland.

We chose Irish illustrator Sally Caulwell to create illustrations for each of the variants - capturing a sense of the bountiful flora associated across the Beara Peninsula. Sally's modern take on botanical illustrations acts as a direct call out for each of the flavour variants, wrapping the brand identity in a floral wonderland. The overall effect creates a balance between history and heritage reflected in the typography and the contemporary illustrations.