Cervecería Bracino is an artisan-style brewery based in Monterrey, México. As part of a little renaissance in small but quality driven shops, Bracino looks to establish itself as one of the premier custom-taste beer makers in the north of Mexico. Their beer ranges from the usual ale formulas to distinct flavors based on regional sweets and grains. The result is a special but neatly company with very different ideas of what beer is all about.
When I was approached to design the logo, the most important element of a brand, I asked my contact to relate the theory behind the company, which is composed of 4 associates as different from each other as any could imagine. Each one had a vision of what the logo could be, from using elements akin to the beer world like glasses, fermentation equipment, grains, and others. In their brief they explained that the market to approach would be mostly males, with a discerning taste for beer, but most associated with the gourmet-like taste of the beer aficionado. In essence the beer would be liked by the person who appreciates good beer, and not the casual drinker that would order a beer as just another beverage.
Based on this I started to research small, quality driven breweries to embed in myself the sense and sensibilities of these champions of the custom trade. This research would give me 3 possible answers, each based on the custom tier structure that comes from the craft of these beers... made in small batches and put to some rigorous quality control that comes from the love of the process.
The first draft I did came from the idea of the elements that compose the beer. A true connoisseur would know these things, as well as the basic ingredients and paraphernalia that is used to best appreciate the taste. Something was very clear regardless of the outcome, and that was the use of bold, interesting type to complement the theory behind the brewery. Beer is king in the north of Mexico specially, so a lot of cue goes into the choosing of the type treatment. In this rendition I chose blond colors coupled with darker areas to complement the basic graphic elements. The little logo on the glass comes from the idea of the 4 associates, coupled together to make great beer (an idea proposed by the owners that ringed true, and that hints subtly on this element).
The second draft has a very iconic presence, also by using an element of crest in the design. I chose to use bold type again, coupled with an ornamentation motif that would bring the brand some decided recognition from the graphical elements. The use of blond color against darker hints also helps bring out the name and 'B' element to the foreground. The crest has a decided 'heart-like' shape to emphasize the care given to the craft. Alas these 2 ideas got sided when the associates looked at the final draft.
The final draft came to me while I was thinking about the specialty beers that the brewery had in tow. While I thought of the special elements that go into each type of beer it ocurred to me that each one was a flagship in the making, since the brews would pit sweets and bitters to form a very distinctive flavor map. While making a flag outright seemed to far fetched (and not as iconic for this kind of company) I decided to use an oval shape that would translate better on a beer bottle. The type would be bold and easy to read. For the icon I decided to play on form and shadow, to give it a noirish staple, a very 1940's flair. The 'C' transforms to 'B's while the shadow play limit the areas of action for each element. Hints of light help give it depth, while the chosen green complements the blacks for strong, natural hues that represent a conscious brewery that has its motifs very well ingrained with the way natural things work.
