Lakeside wines

Design: the Labelmaker
Printer: Rotoprint
Type Design & Fonts: the Fontmaker
Paper: Arconvert
Photo: Jordan Jelev
Location: United States
Project Type: Produced
Client: Chateau Boshnakof
Product Launch Location: Bulgaria
Packaging Contents: Wine
Packaging Substrate / Materials: Glass bottle
Printing Process: Flexo, high build varnish, gold hot foil stamping

The Project
Lakeside is a new wine brand I was commissioned to create for Chateau Boshnakoff. Just like the brand itself this Chateau is very new on the wine map.

The Boshnakoff family has been growing vineyards for many years. This brought them an excellent reputation among wine-makers as they produce top-quality grapes. Starting from this ground in 2019 they decided to produce own wines from their own vineyards.

The Challenge
I was really happy when I received a phone call from Peter Boshnakoff and soon after that, we decided to start working together on their new wine brand concept. I knew Peter and his older brother Svetoslav for many years since the time we were in high-school so they were not simply ordinary customers for me but also friends I respected.

All their vineyards are located around the city of Varna and they all are very close to the famous Varna Lake. A well-distinguished geographical location is always an advantage but it is often becoming a huge marketing and visual challenge if you want to use it in your brand strategy.

I was pretty much sure I had to put the Varna Lake in the center of this new wine brand but it was really difficult how to get the best of it and use it successfully. I had many other ideas but finally, I decided to use the Varna Lake silhouette taken the way it is from the map. Its random shape was very attractive to me so I decided to focus on this theme. While studying the map, I was thinking about the brand name – what should it be? I did not want to use Varna Lake as a brand name directly as it was too common and even ordinary. I wanted to find the poetry and art in this situation and use it as a flavor of this new wine brand. This is how the Lakeside was born.

After I decided the name I fully focused on my design thinking alongside the execution and print of this new artwork I was about to create.

The Execution
Bottle – A classic tapered bordelaise bottle was the only thing I was dreaming of. I wanted somehow to use bottle shoulders as a natural canvas for my Varna Lake drawing.
Sealing – We used classic cork sealing with a soft gold polylaminate capsule branded with Chateau Boshnakoff text.

Paper – Like in many other projects I did, I was looking for artistic paper with own character and excellent performance in ice bucket. Arconvert’s Jade Raster was the choice I made because I really like how this paper transforms a simple background into a piece of art.

Print – My experience with Jade Raster paper was so huge that I had a very clear idea of what to do with this label from the very beginning. First I wanted a random-outline top edge of the label to enhance the shape of the lake. Then I used a linear pattern to mark the shores of the lake – in fact, this is the place where the “lakeside” really is. I was absolutely decided that the lake should be in blue colour in all labels from this new range and I played with different levels of blue color to make it even more interesting and attractive. On the surface of the lake, I created a custom-drawn wave-like pattern to represent the water currents inside the lake and to create some amazing reflections on the label.

The bottom part of the label is very simple and clean featuring enough space to position the LAKESIDE brand. To get maximum character and legibility I decided to use my favorite Bolyar Soft Pro typeface which is the best solution if you want to have your brand noticed on the shelf.

The Result
Lakeside became a very fresh and recognizable new wine brand. The winery started with only one wine but soon the range will grow with at least 3 more. Targeted exclusively to younger audience this new brand concept is a successful blend of an interesting story, beautiful location, and attractive modern design. I believe all these will work in the future for the success of this new venture I became part of.