As a designer, I’ve worked on drinks packaging for nearly three decades. During that time, it’s been fascinating to see the waxing and waning of drinks brands that have withstood the test of time.
What is it that gives a drink longevity? How is it that a brand that is a powerhouse one decade is virtually unknown the next? A lot of focus gets placed on the packaging, but there is so much more to it than just that.
Take, for example, the great champagne houses, Veuve Clicquot, Perrier Jouët, and Dom Perignon. Veuve’s distinctive yellow label is 145 years old, and although it has been “tweaked and tidied,” it has remained the same. Dom Perignon was launched in 1921 and has the identical label a century later. Perrier Jouët’s stunning Belle Époque bottle was designed by Émile Gallé in 1902—it only came into production in 1964—making it a relative youngster at 58 years old. In Australia, Penfolds Wines, established in 1844, has worn a relatively uniform look of red and white since their first production of Grange in 1953.
