Launching a celebrity beer brand at retail
Launching a celebrity beer brand during Covid, was no easy task.
When actor/comedian/entrepreneur George Lopez opened his third Chingon Kitchen restaurant, a brewery was also born. Located at The Brews Hall, Gerorge Lopez Brewing Co. – Ta Loco Cerveza, brews authentic Mexican-style beers infused with “crazy” flavors.
Although beer styles can vary greatly, George’s four beers push the flavors to a new level of “loco.” His launch includes: a West Coast inspired IPA, Orange Cream Ale, Hibiscus Sour Ale, and a Mexican Style Lager.
The Challenge
When it comes to designing beer brands, there are a number of options. We designed shrink-wrap sleeves to take advantage of the 360 degree printable area. Shrink sleeves are growing in popularity among emerging breweries because they often require shorter print runs than direct to aluminum. This is a real money saver for small-batch launches.
One of the goals for the brand design was to create a series that pays homage to Lopez’s Mexican heritage. We wanted to convey the vibrant Latino culture with the raw street energy found in the Lopez brand.
We weren’t designing a single beer, but a series of them.
Each had their own unique “personality” (style) but needed to look like they belonged to the same brand family. Precise attention was paid to make sure that all four in the series had the same vibe.
Our team turned to DyseOne, a San Diego street artist who helped create the mural art for George’s Chingon Kitchen.
Dyse illustrated each beer’s “story” while incorporating the colors of the flavor profiles into the designs. He also hand-lettered each of the beer names which really gave it an authentic street-style.
Once the background illustrations were complete, we began the overall can design layouts based on the shrink sleeve die line. We picked up the colors of the flavor profiles in the accent pin striping.
Lastly, we followed all the requirements set by the Alcohol Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). The TTB is the governing body for alcohol labeling. Requirements included specific text sizing for the name and location of the brewery, the Government Warning, the Alcohol by Volume (ABV) and Net. Wt. statements.
Our final challenge was launching a celebrity beer brand during COVID.
2020 created it’s own set of unanticipated challenges. During the pandemic, consumers were drinking more beers at home in cans. Large and small breweries were forced to can beers that were stored in kegs while they were closed. This, along with increased sales of soda cans, resulted in a nationwide shortage of aluminum. The result was long order times, and an increase in pricing.
All the way into 2021, the shortage is still going on, leaving many small breweries the hardest hit.
Results
We are honored and beyond proud to have worked as the creative team for this third venture with George Lopez. The George Lopez Brewing Co., brand pairs unusual flavor profiles with visually stunning collectible street art-inspired cans. We loved how well the vibrant color palette matched each beer style to create a Chingon look on the shelf.
George’s beers are launching at Southern California Food4Less stores in time for Super Bowl 55.
The beer roll-out will also include the launch of George Lopez’s Chingon Kitchen Carne Asada and Pollo Asado. Food4Less stores in Southern California will be carrying the beer at retail. You can also find it on tap and in cans at The Brews Hall, and online through CraftShack.com
