Après Hours Espresso Martini Shakes Things Up

Caliber Creative designed the canned cocktail packaging for Après Hours, with an identity that embraces the spirited and alluring "après ski" lifestyle. The foil editorial-inspired serif typeface paired with the rich hues creates a magnetic and inviting experience that will rouse the feeling that consumers are, indeed, always on a holiday vacation in the mountains.

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Après Hours, French for "after hours,” is a new line of canned ready-to-drink espresso martini cocktails. The identity embraces the magnetic "après ski" lifestyle, which places you in a glamorous vintage ski resort where the bar calls you by name.

The logo uses an editorial serif and drawn script to capture the elevated allure of a luxurious lifestyle while the hourglass icon is a subtle easter egg to the Après Hours name. The icon nods to the concept of time and waiting for that after-hour toast and can also be seen as the silhouette of two martini glasses. The tagline "it's time to shake things up," while hinting at the tradition of a shaken martini, communicates the female-owned business trailblazing the male-dominated RTD industry.

The goal of the brand identity is to bridge the gap between the sophistication of sipping an espresso martini and the ease of drinking a pre-mixed beverage from a can. The packaging brings a timeless yet approachable mystique to cocktail hour, using an elegant typographic layout and monochromatic colors juxtaposed by expressive paint strokes, silver accents, and a touch of vintage sparkle. The reflective silver foil also calls out important selling points to the customer on each carton, stressing the 10% ABV, hourglass icon, flavor name and logo. Displayed together, the brown, tan and cream cartons' colors reflect the gradation from day to night while also representing the flavors: Classic, Salted Caramel and Vanilla.