This content was originally published by The Hop Review, a digital magazine that joined the Hop Culture family in March 2020.
This piece was written by Jack Muldowney.
HAMAR, NORWAY
TALAS, which means ‘speak soon’, is a local saying from the heart of Norway–which includes the region housing the city of Hamar. Here, Norwegian restaurant Basarene ØL, chose to execute its unique beer concept, and start some conversation doing so. They coupled a simple pastel color palette with easily identifiable beer styles/names. The design elements get more interesting in regards to the custom type and bottle paper wrap.
When the design agency Anti was put to the task of designing a beer concept for Basarene ØL, they found that the solution lay right there in the open. TALAS is a beer that ‘opens’ more than just the good conversation–it even opens the beer. And in addition to the letters of the logo being shaped and crafted like the bottle openers, the packaging’s paper wrap is also filled with stories of the local Hamar community. Just one more touchpoint that people can discuss while enjoying a beer based on their own local values.
As designers, Anti, put it, “A good conversation starts when you open a beer.”
“It is a well-known fact that beer can lead to conversation, but it is not often you see that the bottle package does the same. ”
“The wrapped packaging of the bottle is a newspaper with local history from the Hamar region. A starting point for a good conversation and sharing stories. The TALAS logo is shaped as bottle openers that makes the typography into an identity element but also a functional tool for the bartender.
The typography is crafted out of fine brass and handmade down to the smallest detail for functional use.”
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Images fromNorwegian design firm Anti, anti.as.
Be sure to check out our previous “Beer & Branding” feature of fellow Norwegian brewers, Lade Gaards, here.
