Mountain Town Brewing Company

Unnoticed to unmistakable

A variety of craft beer bottles lie on a white surface. Each bottle has a unique, colorful branded label with different designs and names. The bottles are arranged diagonally and create a vibrant pattern.

Client –

Mountain Town Brewing Company

Design services provided –

Illustration
Logo Design
Packaging Design

Deliverables –

Logos
Bottle Labels
6-Pack Carriers

Small batch. Big presence.

Founded in 2007, Mountain Town Brewing Company had built a loyal following in central Michigan and was preparing to expand into new regional markets. But as the craft beer category became increasingly competitive, its existing identity and packaging no longer reflected the quality or personality of the brewery.

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MTBC partnered with Cooley Designs to rethink its packaging from the ground up, creating a more distinctive system designed to strengthen recognition, stand out on crowded shelves and support a growing lineup of beers.

Original bottle label designs

Standing out in a crowded aisle

With only seconds to capture attention on a crowded shelf, each beer needed a distinctive personality while still feeling unmistakably part of the Mountain Town family. The existing packaging relied heavily on dated artwork and simple color changes between products, creating little differentiation across the lineup.

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A comprehensive brand and competitor audit helped identify opportunities to create greater shelf impact and stronger recognition. Custom vector illustrations gave each beer its own story and visual personality, while bold color combinations and a consistent packaging structure brought the entire lineup together as a cohesive system.

Oktoberfest Lager

Close-up of an illustration of a arm protruding from a traditional German cuckoo clock holding a frothy beer stein. The background is a red checkered pattern with the word Oktoberfest Lager in bold white and yellow text.

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a red and yellow label with the text Oktoberfest Lager and custom illustration.

Coal Stokers Blackberry Ale

Close-up of an illustration of a pirate skull wearing a train engineers cap, with one eye socket filled with a blackberry.

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a grey and purple label with the text Coal Stokers Blackberry Ale and custom illustration.

Iron Horse IPA

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a metallic silver and bronze label with the text Iron Horse IPA and custom illustration.

Peach Gruit Ale

An isometric photo of a six-pack of Peach Gruit by Mountain Town Brewing Company in a vibrant green, orange, and yellow cardboard carrier.

Close-up of an illustration of a dragon perched behind a peach with its tail wrapped around forming the leaf.

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a vibrant green, orange, and yellow label with the text Peach Gruit and custom illustration.

Railyard Raspberry Wheat Ale

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a vibrant magenta and dark grey label with the text Railyard Raspberry Wheat Ale and custom illustration.

River Bend Bock Lager

Close-up of an illustration of a bighorn sheep with prominent curved horns in the foreground. The background features stylized, overlapping blue mountain ranges under a clear sky.

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a vibrant blue, white, and black label with the text River Bend Bock Lager and custom illustration.

Train Wreck Amber Ale

Close-up of an illustration of a bold railroad crossing sign featuring a stylized RXR design resembling crossing bones.

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a contrasting yellow and black label with the text Train Wreck Amber Ale and custom illustration.

Cow Catcher Red Ale

Close-up of an illustration of a train front with a cowcatcher and glowing headlight on top of cowhide pattern.

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a contrasting red, white, and black label with the text Cow Catcher Red Ale and custom illustration.

Steam Engine Stout

A dark brown beer bottle featuring a contrasting white, tan, and black label with the text Steam Engine Stout and custom illustration.

A presence as bold as the beer

The redesigned packaging transformed a collection of individual products into a recognizable brand family. Each beer maintains its own personality through distinctive illustration and color, while the shared visual structure creates consistency and strengthens recognition across the lineup.

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The result is a packaging system built to capture attention, encourage discovery and give Mountain Town Brewing Company a more distinctive presence on the shelf.

Unnoticed to unmistakable

Small batch. Big presence.

Standing out in a crowded aisle

A presence as bold as the beer

Let’s work together