Are you influenced by label design?

I would say I am more inclined to not buy a beer if it has a shitty label (brown note for example), compared to me buying a beer just for a cool label.

Beer caps are what got me into craft beer believe it or not. I used to try beers that had cool caps and it turned me into a craft beer fanatic now.

 

I think those of us that care enough to drink craft beer on some level or another care enough about label design. The real question is what constitutes label design?

Does a plain aluminum 16oz can of some local NE style IPA with a black magic marker written all over it constitute a label design.

Me personally, I think it does and is even unique and minimal at that!

Art is subjective and label artwork is not different!

 

In a finite world such as our own, labels play a huge psychological role when making a purchase. The amount of care beer companies put in their art design is enough to suggest this to be true. Imagine walking into a store and every and all beer had plain white labels with only beer type, alcohol content, surgeon general warning, and only a number to distinguish it from others. The way we would shop for beer would be significantly different. This is why for those who claim to say no I cannot believe. This is simply because of the fact that you cannot answer this question without bias for how you want to seem to be. The fact is that the labels are there, the influence is inescapable.

Due to this alone I make it an effort to clean out every market at some point. You visit a shop often enough, and throw down enough, and you can come very very close to trying each and every brand that is carried regularly. After about a month I can usually declare that I've tried every beer, I know, with certainty, what I enjoy and what I did not. Then, and only then, can you transcend the labels and take a liking to beers not based on artwork and whatnot. When this happens I mark an X on the store on a gigantic map on a wall in my condo, make a top ten list for future reference, and seek out the next store along my expedition.

 

The old saying "never judge a book by its cover" has always been a staple in my thought process. I bought my first Brown Note because of the label.. and I'm damn glad I did. I like it so much, that after a 1.5 month sabbatical of no alcohol (doctors orders), my first 2 beers where Brown Notes. Smooth, delicious.. and dependable.

When I was young, and still single, I sometimes chased pretty ladies wearing hideous dresses or blouses. It was their "body of work" that was overly enticing! I don't regret those days either. Life's too short.

 

I've not read all comments here but basically, unless you know that behind a specific ugly bottle/label design there's a great beer, of course I'll tend to pick only the ones who look better.

 

Eh, there's too many good beers out there. In a room full of attractive ladies, you need something to decide which one your going to chat up. An ugly blouse could be a deciding factor, when the the next lady is wearing a beautiful blouse.

 

A good looking or amusing label increases the odds I will notice a beer on the shelf, but won't affect my opinion of its taste.

 

I find myself in a strange place; Trillium's labels are, by and large, pretty crappy, but the beer inside the can is fantastic. I seem to be getting drawn towards tall cans with off-center labels because of it.