Oliver's Cider is a damn fine cider
Minimal Label and Intervention
Last week I was looking into British natural winemakers which lead me to stumble across a few cider companies. A concept called natural or fine cider peaked my attention. So what makes a cider fine? You're probably thinking, all ciders are made from apples, that's pretty natural. Back in the '70s that was the case, but in more recent years cider has been produced on a mass scale with artificial ingredients.
Oliver’s Cider located in Herefordshire county is one of these fine cider makers, making cider from "what the fruit gives you" and trying to intervene as little as possible. This process has similarities to wine, each vintage will produce different results, and interesting flavour profiles that consumers can explore and navigate.
Oliver's ciders and perries are made by hand-picking unsprayed fruit, freshly pressing to extract the juice and then fermenting with wild yeasts in small batches. That's it, minimal intervention and minimal ingredients. That was the inspiration for Kellenberger-White who designed the labels. A clean typographic approach, on pure white labels, developed to fit on both small and large bottles. The champagne-style bottle is a sophisticated offering compared to cider bottle norms. The clear glass bottle highlights the rich colours of natural cider. Each bottle is finished off with a traditional brass crown cap, which is interestingly named after the Queen’s crown. A very fitting closure to adorn the top of Oliver's cider, being a British company with a history that dates back to horse-powered cider mills.
It's nice to find companies that honour the quality of ingredients and processes, using real skill to produce a brilliant product.
Other great examples of a…
Batchwell Kombucha, which is brewed in glass rather than using large commercial stainless steel tanks. Brewing in small batches reduces the risk of leaching and ensures a quality product. Designed by Studio South in Auckland NZ, they also have a minimal, sophisticated aesthetic.
