Wine labels are required to tell us what we’re drinking, but the stories behind the labels are often far more interesting.
Staring down at a restaurant’s wine list, there’s only so much to go on for the average wine drinker. Often, the varietal, winery’s reputation and price guide us. If we can manage to remember that we’ve had it before or enjoyed our visit to the tasting room, that helps, too. But standing amid the rows of bottles in our local wine shop or supermarket, consumers are often swayed by a whole different element: the wine label.
Through color, font, texture and design, wineries go to great lengths to make sure their packaging stands out and represents their brands at a glance. From classical to whimsical, straightforward to sumptuous, wine labels today are often meticulously crafted works of art meant to tell a story and make consumers take a second look.
Pushing the limits
Creating wine labels has become big business in the North Bay, with everyone from marketing and design firms to paper manufacturers and label fabricators vying for the business of brands both big and small. Paragon Label of Petaluma is one company that’s carved out a niche for itself in this competitive industry. It was founded in 1999 as a division of Mrs. Grossman’s, one of the largest sticker manufacturers in the world (celebrating 35 years in business this year).
Jason Grossman, president of Paragon Label and son of Mrs. Grossman’s founder, Andrea Grossman, says he remains in close contact with his distributors to keep up on the latest products available and constantly experiments with the products and tools already at his disposal to offer clients a range of design options.
Wineries often come in with a concept and look to Grossman and his staff to help them bring their ideas to life. Using an HP Indigo digital press and five Flexo printing presses, they’re able to print on many different materials and add details like multiple colors of ink, foil, embossing and debossing (in which the paper is pushed downward.)
Paragon is known for the intricate, laser cut designs it creates with its LaserWeb machine, the only one ever built. Most laser technology can cut only on the outside of a label in simple shapes, but the LaserWeb is able to make precise and intricate cuts on both the inside and outside of a label. The company also offers a new method of printing on wood veneer, which can be embossed, printed on and varnished to highlight the unique wood grains on each bottle.
Beyond laser cutting, Paragon helps wineries bring their labels to the next level with high-end papers, unusual materials and cutting-edge security measures. A recent label for Breathless Wines (see "Tiny Bubbles") was printed on a pearlescent paper that mirrors satin ribbon in appearance and texture. “We used the Frozen Orion Diamond paper [by manufacturer Avery Dennison] and printed on that, then added foil and printed on top of the foil,” says Grossman. “It looks like jewelry and is a label I’m really proud of.”
Grossman thinks the next frontier in wine labelling is the addition of security features to protect brands from fake products being sold around the world. “As the wine market in China opens up, there have been big problems with counterfeit wine showing up,” he says. “Security measures are going to be critical, and there’s already so much we can do to prevent counterfeit bottles.”
To stay ahead of the problem, wineries can employ specialized papers and inks—or even add holograms. Paragon can also include QR (quick response) codes, linking consumers to winery websites or other information, and sequential numbering on bottles to help track inventory, commemorate special releases or even authenticate wine to prevent counterfeits.
“We have a lot of competitors who can put ink on paper, so we really do push the limits,” says Grossman. “We’ve gotten some business just because other printers have said no and we say, ‘Sure, we can figure that out.’”
Taking aim at millennials
Slingshot Wines of Rutherford is one example of the difference a standout label can make. Slingshot began with the idea of capturing the millennial market, choosing a name meant to evoke a youthful, Americana vibe.
“Slingshot is young, mischievous and a little Dennis the Menace,” says James Stewart, founder of Slingshot Wines and general manager of Stewart Cellars in Rutherford. Stewart is part of a new generation of winemakers in his family. His sister, Caroline Stewart Guthrie, is on board as Slingshot’s winemaker. His father, Michael Stewart, is the owner of Stewart Cellars, known for its premium Cabernet Sauvignon, and boutique label Hollis Wines.
The original label for Slingshot was a more simple and traditional representation, but after several years, Stewart wondered if it was too formal to stand out and express the brand. “Slingshot is irreverent and fun, and we really wanted to capture that in the branding.”
For help in the rebranding effort, Stewart turned to David Schuemann, owner and creative director of CF Napa Brand Design in Napa. Schuemann is the author of 99 Bottles of Wine: The Making of the Contemporary Wine Label, which explores the behind-the-scenes stories of some of the world’s most interesting and recognizable wine labels, including Slingshot’s.
When meeting with Stewart, Schuemann and his team pitched six ideas, including one featuring a colorful bull’s-eye and another with a hole roughly die-cut through the paper with the glass showing through, imitating a rock’s trajectory through the label. Stewart liked both and asked if there was any way to combine them. A staffer hurriedly made a mock-up of the two components together and for testing purposes, the new bottle was placed on one of the firm’s waiting room shelves, tucked among years’ worth of other sample products on display.
“I came in and could spot it from a mile away,” Stewart recalls. “I knew then that it was ‘the one.’”
The label also includes a smaller version of the signature slingshot below the bull’s-eye and the brand’s tagline, summing up its no-rules attitude: “Irreverently made in the Napa Valley.”
So far, the new label has garnered lots of favorable attention from consumers and the industry. Even better, sales are up 30 percent since it was introduced in 2012. Stewart believes he’s making a great wine at an affordable price, but because it wasn’t one of the “usual suspects” starting out, getting people to notice it was critical.
“We want people to look at it, to pick it up and touch the hole [on the label] to see if it’s real,” says Stewart. “If it gets the wine into their hands, we figure that’s half the battle.”
Pairing art and wine
After 32 years, Joe Benziger has learned a thing or two about the art of winemaking. But Benziger, winemaker for Imagery Estate Wines and partner at Benziger Family Winery in Glen Ellen, has also learned a great deal about art itself—and changed the way we view wine labels in the process.
In 1985, just as his family’s eponymous winery was taking off, Benziger met Bob Nugent at a wine tasting and polo match in Santa Rosa. Nugent is a professor emeritus of art at Sonoma State University and a well-respected painter and sculptor.
“He found out I made wine and asked if we’d ever consider doing an artist’s type of label,” remembers Benziger. “I said, ‘Sure, yeah, come over and meet my family.’ That’s what kicked it all off.”
Nugent’s first label was a triptych, one larger image made into three smaller ones for a special three-pack of Chardonnay that Benziger Family Winery was releasing. Soon, the family had a special release of Zinfandel that needed a label, and Nugent suggested calling on his friend, Bay Area artist Tim McDonald. McDonald’s painting featured several landmarks from the Benzigers’ main property, including an old wine press, some agave plants and a replica Parthenon that presides over a hillside.
“At that time, we were finding very small, unusual lots of grapes all over the state that didn’t necessarily fit in with the Glen Ellen program,” says Benziger. “That’s when we decided to put the artist’s labels on those vintages and try to sell them out of our tasting room.”
Imagery Estate Winery and the Imagery Estate Winery Artist Program were born.
Nugent has carried on as curator of the Imagery art collection, much of which is on display in Imagery’s tasting room/gallery on Highway 12. He’s also in charge of commissioning artists from around the world to design the artwork featured on the winery’s labels. The art collection is now one of the largest of its kind in the world, with nearly 450 works by close to 300 different artists, with 25 to 30 artists currently commissioned for new pieces.
Artists work under no deadline and receive only a small honorarium, some wine for themselves and their names listed on the back of the wine label. The only requirement for the works is that they feature some representation of the Parthenon’s arches, as did McDonald’s initial work.
“[Nugent] looks for different styles and expressions from up-and-coming artists and recruits some established contemporary artists whose works he respects,” says Benziger. “That’s his thing and we trust him, 100 percent, to make those decisions.”
Benziger always gets involved when it comes time to pair the art and wine, though. With the lists of wines to be bottled that year and latest artwork in front of them, choices are made for reasons both practical and intuitive.
“For a deeper, richer wine, you generally want deeper, richer colors,” he says. “We say, ‘This one looks like Barbera, this one looks like Viognier.’ It’s a fun process to go through.”
After years of living and working around beautiful art every day, Benziger has taken up painting himself. In fact, Imagery released a 2009 Dragonsleaf Syrah featuring his artwork on the label, with winemaker duties taken on by Nugent. The two hope to continue this collaboration, learning from each other and finding new ways to be creative.
Asked if art was such a passion of his before all of this began, Benziger laughs, “No, absolutely not.
“Wine has been my passion. But when you think about it, there are a lot of similarities. How people interpret art and wine is subjective, based on what they’re thinking and feeling at the time. And with both, you need a vision or inspiration before you create them.”
One of a kind
Fabiano Ramaci of Windsor always knew he was bucking convention by making his beloved European-style varietals in Sonoma County. When he was starting out more than two decades ago as a hobby winemaker, some of the grapes he needed for his Amarone and Barbera wines were so hard to get that he took to growing cuttings in his own backyard.
By 2009, when the self-taught chef and winemaker was ready to take the plunge and launch his own label, Mora Estate Wines, he found himself with wines he was proud to share with the world but without a big marketing and design budget, so he turned to his favorite artist for help: his wife.
Each bottle of Mora Estate wine features a hand-painted work in acrylics by Alena Ramaci, painted directly onto the front of the bottle. Mora Estate is now producing about 500 cases per year, but Alena sits down with just two or three cases at a time so she can take her time and enjoy the painting process.
What started as an artistic experiment has turned into something much more than that. The Ramacis frequently hear stories of customers enjoying the wine in restaurants and then asking to take the bottles home with them. They’ve seen them used as vases, candleholders and olive oil containers with a spout added on top. Some people have even cut holes in the bottom and added string lights to show off the art.
“It’s been interesting to see how her work has evolved over the last few years—and exciting to see how the product is being embraced, both as wine and an art piece,” says Fabiano.
While each bottle is abstract and unique, customers often tell Alena they see flowers bursting through her designs. This comes as no surprise to her, as she’s trained as a floral designer and is used to expressing herself through the shapes and colors of plants. Angels are another frequent sighting. Fabiano found a spot-on flamenco dancer in one, hands curved expressively, and a friend planning a trip to Hawaii was adamant that she found a pineapple adorning her bottle.
“When most people are designing a label, it symbolizes them somehow, maybe with their family crest,” explains Alena. “In this case, I’m trying to express what I’m feeling, but I don’t want the label to be about me. I want it to be about the people looking at it because it speaks to them.”
Mora Estate plans to introduce a rosé this summer that may need a paper label in front (to make it more ice bucket-friendly), but, for now, the couple is enjoying working together to put their hearts and souls into both their wine and the bottles it’s delivered in.
“It’s Fabiano’s job to make the wine beautiful and taste off-the-charts,” says Alena. “My job is to express what I feel, to get it onto that bottle and make it personalized. If it hits somebody’s heart when they look at it, then I know I did my job.”
Starting a conversation
Wine labels may be required to list alcohol levels and AVAs, but at their best, they also provide a window on the people who’ve made the wine possible. They can make us laugh or think or remember. They can play a part in making new memories, as well, as bottles are admired and enjoyed and passed around the table.
Stewart says he hopes Slingshot’s label makes people think of happy memories from childhood, when life was less about rules and more about having fun.
While Benziger hopes Imagery’s labels represent the creativity and sense of discovery that go with his wines, he’s even more interested in the dialogs they can spark. “We just hope that when people are eating food and drinking wine, the label will be there to create some good conversation,” he says. “That’s what should happen at a dinner table.”
