We have today launched the bespoke new packaging for our award-winning Kirkjuvagr Gin. A bold and eye-catching design, the bottle features several nods the distillery's Orcadian heritage.
Our brand strapline - Unmistakeably Orcadian – is engraved on the lip of each bottle and the Norse word ‘Afl’ is found written around the neck in Runes, which translates as “strong” and attests to the Kirkjuvagr brand’s strength of connection to Orkney, both culturally and historically.
Orkney Distilling’s unique repeating wave pattern forms the body of the bottle, symbolising the seafaring traditions of the islands and the bold, exploratory spirit of Orcadians. Its fluidity serves as a reminder that life on Orkney never remains still!
Vegvisir, the mythical Norse compass, is stamped into the bottle and etched atop the bottle closures. The company’s key marque, this ancient Viking wayfinder was said to possess home-bearing powers and, like so many Orcadians who return home to Orkney, is an offer from us for customers to travel to, and explore, Orkney - the home of Kirkjuvagr Gin.
“He who holds this compass will find his way home” is a hidden detail inscribed in the bottle’s base and is cue to the literal contemporary translation, or meaning, of the Vegvisir.
Working in partnership with Stoelzle Flaconnage – who are an industry leader in bespoke premier spirits packaging solutions – the new look Kirkjuvagr bottles represent the latest stage of development for the Distillery.
In tandem with the packaging rebrand, we have also consolidated our product range. Summer-inspired Harpa Gin is set to be discontinued whilst Beyla and Aurora gins both increase from 50cl to 70cl bottles in order to retain a consistent shelf presence across the range.
To coincide with the launch of the new packaging, a bottling line is set to be installed at the Distillery, which will support a planned increased production capacity.
Orkney Distilling Limited’s Co-Owner, Stephen Kemp said:
“We’ve been continually developing the Company now for almost six years. A key component of our brand development plan has always been this move into the super-premium packaging category, which now aligns the package with the modernity and high quality of other aspects of the brand and the Company’s operation.”
“The dramatic change in circumstance caused by COVID and the lockdown created space and time for us to really focus on these projects as a team. We worked tirelessly for over a year to take them to fruition, and the super-premium package you now see really captures our story and helps us reinforce our prominent position within Scotland’s fantastic array of craft gin brands, whilst our new bottling line will enable us to serve larger markets.”
The updated range of Kirkjuvagr Gins is available here!