The Cabrach, a remote area north Aberdeenshire was once the thriving hub of an illicit whisky industry. The areas remoteness, ‘dark-skies’ status and frequent slate shipments from the nearby quarry, made the area a perfect choice for smugglers dealing in the illicit trade.
“Cabrach” is the old Gaelic word for “antler place” and expresses how the area was, at one time, the home of herds of red deer.
The Cabrach Trust are currently undertaking a conversion of the traditional steading buildings at Inverharroch Farm into a working historical distillery and heritage centre. The distillery will use historical distilling methods from the 19th century to produce 'The Cabrach’, a single malt whisky, the way it would have been produced in the Cabrach circa 1820.
The proposed print application for the heritage identity was to use copper foils, referencing the stills, on a grey board, giving a nod to the slate quarry which brought a great deal of wealth to the area. For consistency of brand the single malt would again use copper foils, this time on a midnight blue board, giving reference to the important dark-skies status of the area. On both, the place name ‘Cabrach’ would be debossed in white foil.
In order to compete with traditional whisky brands 'on the shelf’ the bottle was approached with a more contemporary/minimalist style. A clear (allowing visibility of the precious liquid), squat and rounded bottle was chosen, finished with an embossed wax seal. The copper foil brand mark standing out against the dark midnight blue label. On closer inspection, and in order to add a deeper layer of intrigue, a spot UV (clear ink) depicting a simplified landscape telling the story of the Cabrach’s dark history is visible, stars twinkling as the light catches the spot varnish.
