Archipelago (ARC) is a line of craft gins by Full Circle Craft Distillers, the Philippines’ first-ever craft distillery. It is owned and founded by Matthew Westfall, a third-generation distiller. His grandfather, Peter Westfall, moved to the Philippines in 1918, then he went on to work on beverages we know and love today.
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2022
Archipelago is the flagship product of Full Circle Craft Distillers. Founded by Matthew Westfall, it is an authentic craft distillery based in the heart of Laguna.
ARC is a balanced botanical gin made up of over 28 botanicals. It uses local fruits such as pomelo, calamansi, and dayap and flowers such as ylang-ylang, sampaguita, and camia.
Matthew went all over the Philippines in search of the right flavors for this one of a kind spirit.
Filipino culture and landscape, distilled
With such a unique product, Full Circle wanted an identity and packaging design that matches its complexity. The label should convey the uniqueness and richness of the Philippine terroir, distilled into a bottle and showcased to the world in an authentic way.
Letras y Figuras, Spanish for “letters and figures” is a painting style that has deep roots in Filipino culture. It was popularized during the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines and it usually depicts the everyday lives of Filipinos from that era.
For Archipelago, it is used to illustrate the gin making process and regionality of the ingredients.
Numismatic elements also play a big part in the overall look of the packaging design. It directs the custom typeface, font choice and style of illustration.
A full alphabet of letras was created to complete ARC’s illustration library. Each letter depicts a step in the gin making process; from picking the produce, preparing the ingredients, distilling the spirit, to finally enjoying the drink.
Details of the label reveals key ingredients and locations hidden in the artwork like benguet pine, pomelo and sampaguita. Lava Rock Vodka got its name from the volcanic rocks sourced from Taal volcano. These rocks are incorporated in the distillation process to give the drink a unique profile.
In the 2019 Adobo Design Awards, Archipelago won Gold award typography and Silver for branding.
