Toast-worthy Designed Wine Labels: How to Leave a Lasting Impression

When distributing your wine, the production is only half the battle — the other half lies in presentation and marketing. You are not just looking to share; you are looking to sell. 

This is where we shift our attention from the vineyard and the winery to bottling and labeling. The process is a chance to tell your wine’s story, express your brand, and make an impression that lasts long after the last drop has been savored. The product label plays a significant role in your customer's purchase decision and is the first thing they see as they scan through the rows of bottles. Well-designed wine labels can pique curiosity, draw a customer in, and encourage them to choose your bottle.

Discover the Power of Printed Labels: Three Major Benefits

Save Money

Launching a winemaking venture can be a costly affair. Most of your budget will likely be devoted to procuring the perfect grapes, ensuring your winemaking equipment is top-notch, and maintaining the ideal conditions for fermentation and aging. When packaging your final product, you will want a solution that aligns with your brand image without breaking the bank.

Opting for printed labels instead of having your product labels printed directly onto the bottles is a practical solution to manage costs. Direct-to-bottle printing requires specialized equipment and expertise, often leading to high costs and minimum order quantities that could stretch your budget. Printed labels provide flexibility with order sizes, allowing you to purchase what you need when needed. As your business scales, your label needs can easily adjust without incurring excessive costs.

Easily Adjustable

Over time, you may want to tweak your logo, modify your branding message, or update regulatory information. With direct-to-bottle printing, making such adjustments can be costly and time-consuming. You might end up with a surplus of pre-printed bottles that no longer represent your brand or comply with regulatory updates.

Printed labels offer an ideal solution to this problem. Changes can be made effortlessly in the design stage, with new batches of labels printed quickly and economically. The ability to change product labels allows you to adapt swiftly to unforeseen circumstances such as changes in supply lines or materials or sudden shifts in consumer trends. In an industry where timing can make a huge difference, printed labels give you the agility to keep pace with change.

Diversity of Design and Materials

Every wine’s uniqueness should be captured and represented in the packaging. The material and design of your label play an instrumental role in creating a unique identity for your wine. Red wines are often served at room temperature, requiring a label that withstands normal conditions. However, white and sparkling wines are typically chilled, needing labels that can resist moisture and stay intact even when submerged in ice water.

Printed labels offer various materials to cater to these diverse needs, from paper labels with a rustic appeal to durable synthetic labels that can weather tough conditions. Printing technologies can handle many design options. This flexibility allows you to match your label material and design to the character of your wine. By leveraging the benefits of printed product labels, you can create a brand identity as unique and memorable as the wine you produce.

Crafting Compelling Wine Brands

Wine branding, or rebranding, is an opportunity to showcase your brand's essence, tell a compelling story, and create a visual connection with your potential customers. Here are some fundamental aspects to consider:

Express Your Brand

A carefully crafted label visually represents your brand's personality, values, and unique selling propositions. It should resonate with your target audience and express your brand's tone. The key here is to ensure your brand identity and label's aesthetics are consistent. This can significantly impact the perceived value and quality of your wine.

Label Shaping

The shape of your label plays an integral role in the overall perception of your wine. Traditional rectangular or oval labels may evoke a sense of heritage and authenticity, while unconventional shapes might express creativity and innovation. The shape of your label can also complement the form of your bottle. A sleek, tall bottle might be enhanced by a vertically oriented label, while a broader bottle might be better suited to a horizontally oriented label. 

Tell a Story

We all love a good story. Marketers have leveraged this for ages, and the wine industry is no exception. A story makes your wine more relatable and memorable. Perhaps your vineyard has a rich history, your winemaking process is particularly unique, or a charming anecdote is behind the wine's name. All these narratives can be subtly woven into your label design, making it a conversation starter.

Color and Material Choice

The colors and materials you choose for your label play a vital role in eliciting specific emotions in your consumers. Warm colors might evoke feelings of comfort and richness, while cool colors could communicate a sense of sophistication and elegance. Similarly, the choice of label material can reflect your brand — glossy materials can hint at modern luxury, while textured or recycled paper might convey an eco-friendly or rustic image. Choose colors and materials that coordinate with your brand image, the type of wine, and the emotions you wish to evoke in your customers.

Back Label

While the front label grabs attention and makes the first impression, the back label plays a significant role in sealing the deal. This is where you can dive deeper into your story, provide tasting notes, suggest food pairings, or share accolades and awards. The back label is also the place to include necessary regulatory information, ensuring your product stays compliant. It is an opportunity to connect with consumers contemplating their purchase, providing them the assurance they need to choose your wine.

Wine Labels for Inspiration

Designing a wine label can be an exciting yet challenging task. To spark your creativity, let's explore a few wine labels that showcase different design philosophies and offer a rich diversity of styles to inspire your own creation.

 Source: Packaging of the World

Salla Estate 

This Salla Estate label exudes sophistication by providing only the essential details. The paper choice is rich in texture and brings a sense of tradition. This label combines a modern sheen and the classic crest without one overshadowing the other. The Salla Estate wine is an excellent example of a traditional feel with a modern twist.

Source: Design & Paper

Skizo Wine

The Skizp wine label design truly comes to life through vibrant hues and defined edges. The use of full-wrap, elongated labels supports the overall artistic impression and adds dimension to the bottle. This design strategy uses bright bottle capsule colors and matching labels corresponding to the specific wine variety.

Source: Design & Paper

Vérkat

Vérkat crafted an elegant and simplistic branding and packaging solution for their wine, effectively capturing its light, fruity, and floral nuances. Drawing inspiration from modernist aesthetics, the design concept features an intriguing interplay of forms and shapes. Each bottle sports two labels — a fixed central one and a second that varies in positioning. This blend of playfulness and minimalism creates a striking contrast that sets the wine apart.

Source: Packing of the World

Saracina Vineyards

This label was designed to showcase the place Saracina Vineyards calls home. This wine stands out on the shelves by carefully crafting a delicate balance between the property's robust landscape and the label’s sleek design. The label's diverse textures embody the richness of the landscape, effectively conveying the location's unique character.

Getting Started With Labeling

It is crucial to realize that the label is not just a piece of paper attached to a bottle it creates the first impression and communicates your brand's story. While it can be one of the most challenging aspects of designing or redesigning, it is also one of the most rewarding. You must have a thorough and clear understanding of your brand before you tackle the design process. What is your story? Who are your target customers, and what are their preferences? Understanding your brand identity will help you make decisions about label shape, color, material, and typography that align with your brand personality and appeal to your target demographic.

Once you have decided on the perfect label design, you must figure out how you will label your bottles. Initially, you might consider hand labeling. It is a cost-effective solution when you are just starting; however, hand labeling can become time-consuming and inconsistent as your production volumes increase. Investing in a labeler can be a more viable solution. Labeling equipment speeds up the process and ensures each label is applied consistently, maintaining a professional image. They come in various sizes and capabilities, so you can find one that fits your current needs and can scale with your business growth.

Maximize Efficiency With the Right Wine Labeler

As you create unique wine labels, you will discover that a labeler is not just a piece of equipment — it is a vital component of your operation that can significantly enhance efficiency and presentation. A labeler is invaluable for any winery, whether you are just starting out or looking to scale your operations. Understanding the functionalities of your labeler and how to use it effectively can elevate the look of your product while saving you considerable time and effort. With careful selection, correct setup, and proper maintenance, your labeler can significantly streamline your production process and help ensure your product labels are applied consistently and accurately. This saves time, reduces error, and contributes to the professional presentation of your wine bottles, leaving a lasting impression on your customers. If you are ready to learn more about your options, download our free guide, A Practical Guide to Choosing the Right Labeling Equipment, today!