Every good beer starts with a story. That's why we feel it's important to tell each beer's tale on our labels. The name, flavours, and brewing process. It's a lot to communicate on a cylinder-shaped canvas measuring 21cm x 14cm.
We start by dividing our can designs into sides based on the three fields of vision, or the sides visible without rotating the can. We call these three sides the story side, the info side, and the good side.
Here is a breakdown of the graphical and factual elements of a Sawdust City beer label:
THE STORY SIDE
The story side of our labels leads with the Sawdust City Brewing Co. stamp. This one is a beer label's standard. Next comes the beer's story.
In our stories we cram as many narrative elements and literary devices as is feasible. Then we sprinkle in some particulars relating to the beer's aroma and taste, along with any brewing techniques used in its crafting. All the text is horizontally aligned for easier reading once you've started enjoying the can's or bottle's contents. We're proud of our workmanship so we finish the story with the beer creator's signature.
Underneath all that we put the beer's important identifying information like UPC and allergens.
THE INFO SIDE
We want to make our labels as informative as we can. With the limited space we need to be concise.
The top of the can will tell you the two prominent features of the beer. After that is the brew's style. Next we delve deep into the particulars with what we call the nerd numbers. These numbers reveal the bitterness level, activity that happened during the brewing process regarding sugar and yeast activity, and how dark the body will be.
The name and brewing location is a requirement. And we hope it helps those who enjoy our beer from afar come visit us one day.
THE GOOD SIDE
Just like a face, there's always "the good side" for beer can photos. This is where the culmination of the beer's style, name, and story meld to make an eye-catching design.
The good side is also where we put mandatory information like the beer's alcohol content, the product's common name, and the can's volume.
Now we ask everyone not to judge a beer by its label. However, if you decide to, we made that judgement easier. Enjoy!