Monachus Gin — A Dash of Istria

Design: Bedow
Location: Sweden
Project Type: Produced
Client: Monachus
Product Launch Location: Global
Packaging Contents: Gin
Packaging Substrate / Materials: Glass Bottle
Printing Process: Embossing, Hot foil Stamping

Visual identity and packaging design for Monachus Distillery. The tiny Monachus distillery sits at the tip of Croatia’s Istria peninsula, where the land dips into the shimmering Adriatic sea. The gin takes its botanicals from the hillsides here, and borrows its name from Monachus Monachus, the endangered Mediterranean monk seal that used to live on these shores. The distillery’s connection to the nature of Istria runs throughout the design, from the seal stamped on each bottle, to the pine cones strewn on the hills behind the distillery. A set of five custom labels shaped by the natural history of Istria were created: salt and stone, wind and wave and pine cone.

What’s Unique?
Every aspect of Monachus gin is defined by its sense of place. Inspired by the natural history of Istria and the Adriatic sea, we drew on the elements that make this place unique: not just the monk seal, but the salt, sea, wind, stone, and pine. And to reflect the craft and care of a small-batch gin, we put hand-crafted elements at the heart of the branding.