Penfolds: carefully curating Australia's national treasure.
Penfolds is Australia’s most famous wine with an increasing presence in the global luxury wine market. International consumers have not grown up with Penfolds as many Australian drinkers have: the brand’s modest uniform labels left them perplexed and confused as to the difference – and price points – between the wines. The labels also gave no inkling to the consumer of the rich heritage of the brand, which stretches back to 1844: an impressive pedigree even by European standards. Over the years we have worked with Penfolds to tell more of their brand story and make more of a difference between the wines whilst keeping to Penfolds’ very defined personality of restrained luxury.
The label for Penfolds’ 170th anniversary, reflects c.19th medicine labelling and founder Dr Christopher Penfolds’ original profession. The timber gift box, with a bespoke lock and secret drawer mechanism, contained a tiny book that showed the progression of the vintage from first bud burst to harvest.
Penfolds Bins range is probably the most recognisable of the Penfolds’ portfolio. We refreshed these signature labels to include more detailing about each individual Bin wine including their first release dates. For the iconic Grange, whose label remains virtually unchanged, we designed bespoke orientated tissue wrap for the 60th anniversary of this legendary wine.
In October 2017, Penfolds launched an unprecedented wine: an innovative blend of three of the exceptional vintages of Grange into one single wine known as “G3”. With only 1,200 bottles produced, the design needed to reflect the rarity but also the radical nature of this release.
When redesigning Cellar Reserve, Penfolds’ white colour palette was reversed in order to establish this tier as a more contemporary expression of winemaking. Sold exclusively at Penfold’s cellar door at Magill, the label reflects the more experimental nature of the wines which are outside of the traditional Penfolds style. We art-directed the product photography using contemporary sculpture to highlight the creative, modern nature of the wines.
First vintaged in 1964 and named after the Boeing 707, the label of Bin 707 has not changed for decades. Penfolds wanted to mark the anniversary of this wine with a limited edition magnum. We designed an aluminium flight case – complete with seat belt to keep the bottle secure.
Penfolds decided to use the oldest cellar in the winery – Magill Cellar 3 – exclusively to house very small number of barrels sold to customers en primeur. Denomination was asked to develop a label to reflect this historic cellar as well as branding for the cellar and the barrels. The customer received a personal custom security key to unlock the cellar, made from a composite metal that includes soil from Magill Estate and housed in a presentation box made from the same oak as the barrels.
Of all the limited edition projects for Penfolds, perhaps the most exceptional was the Ampoule. A collaboration between glass artist, silversmith and cabinet maker, this exceptional piece was entirely crafted by hand. We designed the accompanying book and certificate of authenticity as well as art directed photography which captured each craftsman in their respective studios.
Penfolds is best known for its table wines however it boasts an impressive collection of aged fortifieds. Denomination redesigned both labels and gifting to better reflect the super-premium nature of these wines.
