Braastad Cognac is a small family business, which produces 0.5% of the world’s cognac and is one of the few houses that still run their own distillery and vineyard.
We were asked to redesign the super-premium range of the Braastad house and the Three Stars Cognac with the goal to strengthen Braastad's position as a marker of special occasions while making sure those occasions would feel more modern and accessible.
Both Braastad Extra and XO Superior where part of Braastad’s portfolio and needed to be updated to the new design platform developed for the middle range, but while they needed affiliation to the brand platform, they also needed to be interpreted and approached individually in terms of signifiers, bottle applications and box execution.
Inspired by findings in the archive of the estate, we crafted new design elements and introduced new materials aiming to engage a new generation of Cognac connoisseurs to connect with the heritage of the brand.
The story of Braastad stretches back to 1875 with the establishment of the Tiffon Cognac House on the banks of the river Charente. The home of Braastad and Tiffon is Chateau de Triac, just 5 km from the town of Jarnac, which was first built in the 11th century. When in 1913 Médéric Tiffon’s daughter Edith Rousseau married a young Norwegian cognac pioneer, Sverre Braastad, the two families of Tiffon and Braastad joined together, making way for their house of Cognac in 1919.
The woman on the crest – which first appeared on Tiffon bottles in
1875 – echoes both France’s national symbol, Marianne, and Edith Rousseau, who married Sverre, bringing together the House of Cognac of Tiffon and Braastad.
Today, the family owns 40 hectares of Grande Champagne and Fins Bois vines, overseen by cellar master Richard Braastad, who comes from a historic cognac producers’ family.
1. Tiffon poster, 1927
2. Tiffon Three stars, 1950
3. Braastad's existing V.S., V.S.O.P., and X.O. range designed by Here Design
4. XO superior with Box before the redesign
We extended the colour palette to different shades of blue, running through the range, from a lighter blue for Three Stars, to an increasingly darker for XO Superior and royal blue for Extra, signifying their different ages and complexities.
While Extra and XO Superior are filled in the same vessel, they needed to show their difference through the choice of materials and applications. Braastad Extra's decanter manifests its prestige and elegance through bespoke engraved metal fittings, cap and metallic silkscreen on the glass. The use of textures and materials is echoed in the custom-designed gift box, dressed with a natural caramel textile, a metal plaque, and matte blue foil. Upon the opening of the gift box, the decanter sits within a molded shape dressed in a matching velvety texture, embellished with matte blue foil, a gross grain ribbon, and individually numbered labels for each bottle. Custom lettering for Reserve Secrete, typographical layouts, and design elements were created to match the complexity and elegance of a 60-year-old liquid.
The XO Superior is aged for up to 25 years. The bottle is presented with a custom designed wooden closure, with the same shape as for Extra, and paper labels all embellished with copper foiling. The gift box of the XO Superior, with its elegant yet impactful expression, strikes a balance of proud heritage with a confident and contemporary flare.
Braastad Three Stars is equivalent to a VS, a bold and vibrant Cognac, the result of a double distillation before aging in fine Limousine casks for 30 months. It can be enjoyed both neat, over ice, or as a cocktail ingredient, expanding the traditional cognac audience to a younger crowd. The new design brings in a vibrant light tone of blue, in combination with a more dynamic design language compared to the rest of the Braastad range.
When art-directing this photo shoot we aimed to challenge the idea of Cognac as a gender-specific spirit with its stereotypes. Thanks to Monica and Ziemowit for joining the shoot. A big thanks also to Esben Holmboe Bang for opening the doors to The Conservatory. Here’s to more gender-neutral spirits!