Roaring Table Brewing
Aiming to carve out their place on craft beer’s crowded shelves, RTB looked to Malt to create a packaging system that would make their foray into retail stand out.
As a new entrant to the increasingly saturated beer retail market, Illinois brewery Roaring Table needed packaging that was bold yet approachable––and that played up the whimsy of its former-copywriter-turned-head-brewer’s quirky beer names. We worked with the team to create a labeling system with a consistent hierarchy and illustration style for their initial beer releases. The result was a playful mid-century-inspired aesthetic that could adapt to any future releases, whether it be a hazy IPA or a barrel-aged Grisette.
The new beers launched in 2019 to much fanfare, helping Roaring Table eventually take home the title of ‘Best New Brewery’ by USA Today.
↗ ILLUSTRATION ↗ PACKAGING
The first release in Roaring Table’s packaged lineup was a foeder-fermented Grisette (table beer) with notes of lemon. We took the opportunity to play up Head Brewer Lane’s past as a copywriter and flood the label with type. The beer’s name, “Why We Fight,” was a nod to Roaring Table’s place in the industry as a nano-producer and the creativity that fuels the brewery’s recipes.
The second and third releases were 16-ounce four-packs, the names of which were an homage to obscure literary references with illustrations to match: ‘Tuba Solo’, a hazy IPA, and ‘Inessential Houses’, a fruited sour ale.
The end result?
A label system that was fun, adaptable, and consistent, regardless of future beer styles or names. The format provided the brewery with consistency in an otherwise frenetic landscape of changing packaging gimmicks.
Credits
Beth May, Creative Direction
Jeremy Yap, Photography
Blue Label Packaging, Printing
Recognition
Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine, ‘Top 20 Beers of 2021’, Tuba Solo
Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine, ‘Breakout Brewery’
USA Today ‘Best New Brewery’ Winner, 2020
Communication Arts Typography Annual, Finalist, 2019