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New work from Minnesota based design firm Hunt Adkins:

“Bard’s Beer is America’s first gluten-free beer and the only one that is crafted with 100% malted
sorghum to achieve traditional taste and aroma.

It began as a tale of woe: two self-professed beer aficionados discovered that they were allergic to wheat, one of the main ingredients in 99% of beer. After crying in something other than beer for awhile, they decided to take action: They crafted Bard’s Tale Dragon’s Gold, the first gluten-free beer to use 100% malted sorghum to achieve traditional beer taste and aroma. Although they quickly became one of the top four players in this niche market, Bard’s soon began to see major competition (Anheuser-Busch). To survive, they had to find a way to separate themselves from these interlopers while staying true to their craft origins.

Problem/Challenge

Hunt Adkins objective was to re-brand Bard’s so it spoke to the gluten-free enthusiast market without alienating the craft-beer drinker‹those guys who will not compromise one iota on taste. Bard’s needed to speak to the beer drinker in all of us instead of the gluten-free beer drinker in some of us.

Solution

In order to position Bard’s as the gluten-free beer of choice and get it into the consideration set of all beer drinkers we leveraged the essence of Bard’s, which was this: Bard’s was created out of a love for beer. Unlike some competitors, Bard’s was never about exploiting some market niche. It was created to protect everyone’s inalienable right to pull up a stool and drink a cold one with friends.

Bard’s hadn’t just given people a great beer; it had given them camaraderie. It had invited them back to the stool where they could discuss it over a Bard’s. From posters to packaging, from a complete website redesign to the underside of every bottle cap, we gave Bard’s drinkers something to talk about. What does it take to be enshrined in the North Dakota Irony Hall of Fame? What exactly is the best course of action in the event of a zombie attack? How does one successfully answer the “What’s your greatest weakness?” question in a job interview? These topics du jour remind us that the best part of having a beer is having it with friends.

The new packaging launched in November of 2008 and can be seen in 26 states and a Canadian province or two.”

More pics after the jump!
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