Aeternam

Alcohol-free beer is a product that is more difficult to communicate than a classic beer because of a different perception by the public. It seems like an entire world away with completely different targets. Aeternam is a fictional brand who aims in retaking the codes of traditional alcohol and beer without seeming dishonest.

We hoped here to make non-alcohol beer appealing to a larger audience, and to evoke curiosity through the brand alone. The approach was therefore to counter the alcohol-free beer codes and to rely on those of conventional beer. This choice is justified by mythical and epic storytelling, the true recipe for alcohol-free beer; lost in history before finally being found by the Templar Order in the quest for the Holy Grail.

The inspiration and sources used are taken from ancient iconography. These sources include diagrams and illustrations of alchemy books, medieval frescoes and calligraphy, as well as representations of the various mythological figures present in storytelling. From these, a draft of the bottle label served as a central point for the brand design. It contextualize and present the story behind the product.</div>

Telling a story through branding to sell a fictional product.

To legitimize the storytelling, we named the brand but also the product. We used the name of the Philosopher’s Beer (Bière Philosophale) for the communication. Aeternam is refering to the Holy Grail, relating the non-alcoholic beer to the myth.

Illustrations have been designed for the packaging and for the logos. The small colour accents allow for a range of variations. The medium of the illustration allows to tell the story of the Beer Philosophale in a visual way.

Storyboard Prototype

A storyboard presenting the beer’s story was also designed as part of a promotional video prototype. The project was an interesting way of subverting codes in order to brand a niche product.