A new beGINning

Why does gin in a shapely glass bottle need additional cartonboard packaging? “Our customers kept asking for an eye-catching gift box, so we thought about how we could present our product in an even more refined package,” says Achim Brock about the decision to put his gin into an elegant box made of premium cartonboard. Together with Thomas Tirmantinger and Florian Koller he forms the Vienna-based trio of entrepreneurs that calls itself “Kesselbrüder” (kettle brothers). In 2014, they launched their “Wien Gin”, the first gin made in the Austrian capital.

A compelling prototype
By a happy coincidence, MMP had already been thinking about this kind of package and had prepared some initial prototypes. The concept convinced Brock on the spot. It allows the company to offer the bottle along with a decorative glass. Two die cut windows make both elements visible to the viewer.

Design as an homage to Jugendstil
The extravagant design of the package, like that of the bottles, takes certain cues from the Jugendstil era, with its floral ornaments, decorative flowing lines and the gold-coated paintings of Klimt. “We completely covered the package in gold using hot foil embossing,” explains Nikolaus Henn, Category Manager at MMP, an elaborate finishing technique that demanded a high level of meticulousness. To conserve resources as much as possible, the foil had to be as thin as possible, but at the same time it mustn’t tear or burst when the material is bent.

Six layers of cartonboard
To ensure that the bottle, its high-proof contents and the glass are well protected from external influences like impact or shaking, a sturdy, multi-layer cartonboard quality was used. In all respects, the new shell with its rounded windows and relief-embossed ornaments shows extraordinary attention to detail. In the near future, the makers want to equip the gin variations with new standard packages as well. Design patterns for these have already been prepared.