If you’ve been in a beer store in the last week, I bet that you’ve seen the new Sonder cans by now. They stand out next to the old ones. They’re beautiful. That’s not the whole point of this post, though. There’s a bit to unwrap here, starting with the first beer to get the new refreshed branding: Blanc.
A Refreshing Blanc
It was pretty obvious to me on day one that Blanc needed to hit cans. If you go back and listen to the episode of Cincy Brewcast that we recorded from Sonder’s grand opening, you’ll hear that there were a lot of great beers, but that Blanc stood out. It’s hard to stand out in that crowd, too. We were drinking stuff like Kato, Voss, You Betcha!, OG Otto… there were some great beers.
Maybe there weren’t (and still aren’t) nearly enough white ales in Cincinnati, maybe it just hits the perfect spot in refreshing-ness and big flavor – I’m not sure what it is, but it’s magical.
Sure enough, Blanc became the first beer that Sonder put into package. It was also the first test batch that they tasted as a team together, and one of the first that they made. From the very beginning this beer was something special.
So… why change it?
The team spent a lot of time looking at the original Blanc, and wanted something that leaned a little heavier into traditional Belgian-style white ales… and they wanted something that could be even more drinkable and sessionable. I think that they nailed it.
The utilized step mashing and a recipe that includes oats, malted wheat and even raw wheat to create a creamy head and what Chase Legler refers to as a ‘Pillowy’ mouthfeel. That’s a dead on description. The yeasty phenolic and fruity esters play next to a citrusy spice profile in a beautiful exercise of balance and personality.
The New Sonder Packaging
The new rollout of Blancs refreshed recipe provided an excellent opportunity for the brewery to also rollout another refreshed part of their personality.
Their cans have received a bit of a facelift.
It’s not a rebrand, not even in the slightest in my opinion. Their brand is stronger than ever with these new labels. It’s just a shine up, a refreshing, or a face lift. The labels feature not just the brewery’s name – but their big record hop logo, too. It ties the name, the beer, and the personality of Sonder all together into one canvas.
Like I said… you’ve probably seen these around by now – and if not you certainly will. They pop.
The new labels are clean, sleek, and really allow the brewery to tell its story through the telling of each beer’s individual story.
I’m hoping to do a side-by-side taste test for you guys on YouTube in the near future – so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, while you wait, get out there and snag yourself a six-pack of Blanc and give the new recipe a try! If you want to read my full tasting notes, you can do it here – but I encourage you, always, to make up your own mind!