Seven Stills Distillery (Student Project)

Designer: Evan Tolleson
Project Type: Student Project
School: Academy of Art University
Course: Package Design 4
Location: San Francisco, California
Packaging Contents: Whiskey Bottle

Whiskey is traditionally distilled from fermented grain mash, which is technically a very low quality beer. Tim Obert and Clint Potter, friends and founders of Seven Stills, wanted to flip this tradition on its head. They wanted to see what the results would be when whiskey is distilled from high quality, bottle ready craft beer.

Seven Stills is redefining whiskey with new, innovative distilling methods. Their approach creates a flavor palate that whiskey drinkers have never before tasted. It was important to Clint and Tim to avoid the cliché traditional whiskey aesthetic. To avoid doing this, the design bridges the gap from craft beer to quality whiskey. The choice of paper and color palette position Seven Stills as a high quality whiskey, while an industrial choice of typefaces, off-center identity, and quirky illustration recall its roots in craft beer. The result is responsibly playful.

What’s Unique?
The Seven Stills distillery is located in Potrero Hill; a neighborhood with a warm, industrial quality. The landscape of Potrero and a young, educated whiskey audience influenced the look and feel of the logo and packaging. In the logo, the typography takes on an industrial look that is softened by wedged corners of an offset hexagon. The balance of industrious and quirky allows Seven Stills to hover two audiences. It appeals to both craft beer and whiskey drinkers.