Austin Beerworks
Changing the look of craft beer and grabbing international attention for a fledgling regional brewery.
In its first year and a half, Austin Beerworks surpassed its five-year goal, growing an unprecedented 400% and ranking as one of the nation’s fastest-growing breweries. It all started with four guys who could craft stellar beer but needed a brand.
As a small startup brewery entering an increasingly crowded marketplace, the potential to be swallowed up by the sea of craft beer competition was a real concern. Communicating to consumers that the brewery is both local and remarkable was crucial, and the need to stand out on the shelf was paramount.
By bucking craft beer clichés and focusing on what makes the brewery unique, we built a brand strategy and identity that catapulted Austin Beerworks into the market with a bang and sparked a spirited, sustained conversation with customers. The brand packaging and campaigns generate requests worldwide for cans of beer from a relatively small Austin brewery. Tides shifted across the industry as well, with more breweries jettisoning fields of hops and mountain ranges for crisp, clean can design and brand communication.
Three years after launching the brand, Beerworks found themselves surprised. Peacemaker, the beer they expected to drive sales, wasn’t their frontrunner as predicted. We found that drinkers were confused by the “extra pale” style classification: Was the beer extra hoppy, extra strong or extra light? We set out to clear up any confusion, showing drinkers how to enjoy Peacemaker—in a big way.
Changing the beer style, calling it an “Anytime Ale,” communicated that it’s lighter, easy-drinking and lower in alcohol. Even better, it tells drinkers exactly when is best to enjoy it: Anytime is a good time for a Peacemaker. To drive home the point, we created the brewery’s first multipack—and a huge sensation in the beer industry—the world’s first 99-Pack.
Weighing in at eighty-six pounds and measuring over seven feet in length, the 99-Pack took the media by storm and went viral. Austin Beerworks made headlines across the globe, landing on the front page of Reddit and garnering profiles on Good Morning America, Comedy Central’s @midnight, NPR’s Morning Edition, Mashable, Gizmodo, CNN and many more.
