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As craft beer has grown in popularity, the variety of beer making its way onto bottle shop shelves has become a lot more diverse. It’s no longer just rows and rows of pale ales, IPAs or stouts – with sour and farmhouse style beers becoming a lot more popular.

These beers often display complex characteristics and, depending on the style, can be described as “funky” (think smelly feet, vinegar, straw). So, for the uninitiated, maybe a little weird. However, many of these beers are also really accessible, with lots of refreshing fruit beers making their way into the market.

With that in mind, Melbourne’s Hop Nation Brewing Co. conceived Blobfish Beer Festival, dedicated to showcasing Australia’s leading sour, farmhouse and wild beer producers – and a handful international heavyweight breweries invited, for good measure. As for the name…

“Like the blobfish, these beer styles appear from the depths of the Australian Beer scene: intriguing, slightly obscure, somewhat unknown, but always exciting.”

I was tasked with developing the festival branding and identity for the event, including the wordmark, character design, marketing collateral (print, OOH, digital) and merchandise.

The client wanted the branding to be fun, but restrained. It needed to appeal to craft beer fans already familiar these beer styles, but also cater to newcomers, and the “wine and cheese foodie” crowd.