Designing the indescribable isn’t easy. There are few adjectives to inspire the visual expression of this award-winning single malt Whisky. Founded by former ballerina turned whisky entrepreneur, Allison Parc, Brenne represents her dream to show that Terroir (a sense of place in the smell and taste) is possible when making single malt whisky and Brenne does just that. Her partnership with a third-generation farm distillery located in Cognac, France creates Brenne. Brenne means, “a little drop of water” or in this case, just the right amount of water from the Charente River. Heirloom barley grown on the Cognac estate, signature French Limousin oak barrels, Cognac casks and indigenous water deliver French terroir. Our challenge was to make sure the brand expression was as authentic to place as the liquid itself.

Ms. Parc’s partner, Samson & Surrey, whose goal it was to help get Brenne on more shelves than what Ms. Parc could deliver on her own, asked us to create an expression that better communicated French terroir. Guided by the implicit and explicit design principles of Artisan, Farm to Bottle and Joie De Vivre, we found our strategically inspired path. 

Leveraging Brenne’s equites found in its beautiful blue hue, the quintessential French fleur-de-lis and the Brenne monogram, we created an elevated expression to better connect to an authentic French experience. An exquisite new bottle was created to bring forward the brand’s promise of Grace Et Saveur (Grace & Flavor) and is reminiscent of an artisan-crafted bottle that one might find on an estate in the Cognac region of France. The secondary package enveloped the experience to create a one-of-a-kind statement on shelf.