Imagine. I had just posted the review for Humante Garnacha. On my next trip to purchase wine, I was confronted with this. Same wine. Same vintage. Drastically different label!
The Humante wine label with its burly, bearded character was visually powerful and expressive. It scored well. It was highly memorable. Why change it?
I think the answer lies in what they changed it to. The name Humante was hard to connect to the cartoonish character on the previous label. The word doesn’t translate to anything more than a nomadic way of life represented by the red-bearded wanderer.
Humante conjures human or humanity. That’s far more apparent in the new artwork. An androgynous human form created by the connection of a multitude of tiny black dots. Within its chest, a red heart. The distinct two-colour image on a clean white background is simple and modern. It’s striking! I liked the old label. I love this one.
The product name is larger on the new label. The typeface is the same but slightly expanded. A possible shortcoming of the old label may have been a lack of identification. You needed to scour the back label to discover what was in the bottle. The grape varietal, Garnacha has been added to the new front label.
Changes are more subtle on the back label. The layout is cleaner. The tasting notes have been edited. But there are some weird changes in the descriptors. Tradition and Culture have been replaced by Customs. Tales (redundant to Stories) has been removed. Added—this is where it gets weird—Today, Millennials and Technology. Do these words express anything about the wine? They sound more like SEO keywords.
No need to talk about the wine itself. It’s the same vintage I just reviewed. I’ll just note that it is of decent quality and included on best value lists.
Many brands tweak their packaging over time. Often imperceptibly to consumers. Changing a label this significantly is a bold move. It had the one with factor. The one with the red beard guy. Easy to look for. Will fans remember it by name? A slump in sales may result. On the other hand, the new packaging may appeal to a whole new group of consumers. There is a holistic spirit of connection presented in the new image. As many struggle with isolation during the pandemic, it’s a welcome feeling.
One simple question. Which would you buy? Let me know in the comments below.
