We was robbed!

Regular readers will know that earlier in the year, 2nd year graphic design student Sam Mallard's beer can designs (below) were selected for production by our friends, Eden River Brew Co. a continuing partnership that's brought several can designs to the craft beer market.

Recently, we were delighted to learn that Sam's designs were placed second in the standard label category by The Labologists Society - The International Society of Label Collectors.

2nd place!!! ... to use footballers parlance, "we was robbed!" 

Since Eden River Brew Co. introduced the beers in June 2018, these special craft brews have sold out! A testament to the quality of the beers and the shelf appeal of Sam's labels.

Eden River Brew Co.

Brewers team up with the University of Cumbria to put themselves on their product. Literally!

The team behind a rapidly growing independent brewery have injected their personalities into the business by literally putting themselves on their products.

Eden River Brew Co, in Penrith – formerly known as Eden Brewery – renamed and rebranded in June. The brewery has given its new look a personal twist by featuring pictures of its team members on the cans for its core range of modern, hoppy beers. 

It is also inviting customers to put their face on a can next year by posting pictures of themselves drinking one of its brews on social media.  

The cans feature the faces of director Jason Hill, head brewer Linda Stanton, communications and content marketer Giles Brown and designer Jemma Ainsworth, and are available to order at www.edenriverbrewco.uk 

Jason said: “Our whole ethos at Eden is to graft hard to make truly exciting and original beers, but have a bit of fun at the same time. We put a lot of ourselves into making the brewery a success and creating beers we can be proud of. I think Jemma’s designs are a clever and fun way of reflecting that, giving the brand a bit of personality and creating a connection between us and our customers.

“Obviously the people who buy and enjoy our beer are vital in supporting us, giving us feedback and encouraging us to move forwards and expand. That’s why we’re inviting people who love Eden to post a picture of themselves drinking a beer on our social media pages with the hashtag #sipspression. Early next year we’ll pick some of our favourite pictures and feature their faces on 2019’s cans.”

Jemma, a second year graphic design student at University of Cumbria came up with the innovative designs as part of the annual Eden Student Design Project, in which it challenge students to develop the artwork for its beers.

The brewery usually chooses one set of designs for use on a special range of limited edition beers. However, the quality of the work was so high this year it chose to use a number of designs, including Jemma’s which will feature on its core range of well-hopped, modern 300ml cans.

Jemma said: “I knew that I needed to come up with bold designs to stand out on the shelf and be something original that no-one had ever seen before.
“I went into shops and looked on the shelf and I looked online. But I also didn’t want to look too much into it, because I wanted to create something that was truly original.
“I came up with the idea of the faces because I wanted something that would capture people’s attention as they were walking down the aisle; using people’s faces and eye contact draws people in a lot.
“I also wanted to do something that people could interact with and I had the idea that people could get involved on social media. I thought that would be quite interesting.
“They were really welcoming and friendly people to work with and I learned a lot. I never thought that I would work on a beer can design, but I’ve learned that I like working with packaging. The fact that it is formatted on something 3D, you have to imagine how someone picks it up and interacts with it. It’s more of an experience, which I thought was a really interesting way to look at graphic design.” 

Jim Millington, programme leader for graphic design at University of Cumbria, said: “I’m incredibly proud of Jemma, she’s done a fantastic job. She’s obviously enjoyed the experience. Certainly we've enjoyed working on the project with the students and also the folk at Eden River Brew Co. Here’s to working together again next year with a new batch of students and to the amazing and creative designs they undoubtedly will come up with!”

See more of Jemma's work here - jemmaainsworthdesign.co.uk

And don't forget to buy your beer here - www.edenriverbrewco.uk 

Students crack beer brief

Regular readers will know that our illustration and graphic design students have been working with the Eden River Brew Co. brewery, and one of the county’s most successful family businesses, to create the artwork for a new range of beers. 

Eden River Brew Co., in Penrith, is running its Eden Student Design Project for a second time, in partnership with the Westmorland Family, which owns Tebay Services, on the M6, Gloucester Services on the M5 and the Rheged Centre. The new range of beers were launched on Friday 4th May at the Rheged Centre.

In January, the brewery’s managing director Jason Hill briefed design students at the University’s Brampton Road campus on the project - packaging for a limited edition range of fruit beers. Buyers and designers from Westmorland helped to shape the  brief and give insight into how to make products stand out in a crowded market.

Students worked on a design brief for 440ml cans, with designs from second year graphic design student Sam Mallard, 26, from Carlisle, chosen for use with the final products. The range will be on sale at Tebay Services, The Rheged Centre near Penrith and Gloucester Services on the M5.
Eden were so taken with another design concept by Jemma Ainsworth (19) that they’re using her designs for another range of beers.

Brewery managing director Jason Hill said: “The brewery has been doing extremely well and growing nicely over the last few years. This is obviously great news for us, but it’s also really important that as we grow we work with people in the area to make sure they feel some of the benefit as well. 
“This could be all our great local suppliers or, as in this case, youngsters looking to get some really valuable experience before starting their careers.
“It was really tough deciding which of the students’ designs to go with, because there were so many imaginative and striking designs on offer. But in the end we felt that Sam and Jemma had the right combination of flair and fun to do justice to the beers we’ve created.”

Grillust™Group Captain, Jim Millington, said: “The Eden Brewery project is fantastic for our students because it puts them in front of a live client, responding to a brief and delivering a finished design concept. The students were given free rein to be as creative as they liked but they also had commercial requirements to satisfy.”

Commenting on his designs being used for the limited edition fruit beers, student Sam Mallard said: “I’m excited and thrilled to have my designs out there on the shelf for people to buy. To be given the chance to work for a client has been fantastic and I am humbled that my designs were selected when standards were so high.”

Designers Lucien Xavier and Helena Davies, from Westmorland, briefed students and helped to choose the final designs.
“We wanted the design to be creative and unique in a market that is known for its individuality and flair. The students did a great job with the brief, working hard to produce fantastic and professional designs that stand out on the shelves.”