Folklore in a Bottle: The Art of Beer Label Design

Little Greta's Innovative Approach to Brewery Branding

For the design, Little Greta drew inspiration from botany, folkloric architecture, and traditional folklore. Symbols such as the Sorb tree, cockerel, heart, and flowers, which are deeply rooted in the culture of Moravian Slovakia, were incorporated into the design. The cockerel motif, representing resurrection, was particularly fitting for the brewery's return to life. The design team also added beer symbols, hops, and ears of barley to the region's wine-centric iconography.

What sets this design apart is its ability to distil the richness of Moravian Slovakia folklore into a beer label. Little Greta managed to craft a flat background, vector lines, and typography into a vibrant ornamental and eye-catching visual style. The design can be further developed to match the type of beer, introducing appropriate folklore elements from different regions and cultures.

The labels, printed on recycled paper, are glued to a 500 ml dark-glass beer bottle with a swing-top closure. The label consists of three parts: the main label, a safety stamp, and the back label. The design was warmly welcomed and helped the resurrected brewery become a regional brand that locals are proud of.

Little Greta's design process involved extensive offline research. The team explored Moravian Slovakia, looking for famous ornamental wall paintings decorating the chapels and houses. They also visited the regional museum in Uherske Hradiste, the heart of the region, to research the ornaments used in folk costumes. The colours for the basic beer label were derived from modrotisk, a traditional fabric-printing technique.

The biggest challenge was connecting the wine-connected folklore elements, the ornamental form, and the product itself being craft beer. The lettering also posed a challenge as it had to serve two purposes – the label headline and the brewery's logo. Despite these challenges, Little Greta's design was awarded Silver in A' Packaging Design Award in 2018, a testament to their outstanding expertise and innovation.