We went back through the archives to find the original labels designed in O’Shea’s time. There was a simplicity and naivety to these labels, as well as a sense of prestige, that we wanted to bring back. Our solution was to strip the labels of all superfluous graphics and detail, and have a creative approach that was elegant, honest, simple and understated – a reflection of the man himself. A simple colour palette of cream, dark red and black was chosen that connected back to the original labels. The O’Shea crest was redrawn to be close to the original, with its large swan again taking prominence which gives the labels a sense of personality and distinctiveness. The logotype was hand-drawn, and the supporting typography in a classic 19th font.

As the wines increase in price, there is additional information incorporated into the labels: starting with Hunter Valley, moving to Single Vineyard, then to Significant Sites, and finally to the flagship wine “Maurice O’Shea”. For this wine, given it widely known and revered by highly involved wine collectors, the label is confidently singular – simply the brand, the wine name as O’Shea’s signature, and the vintage.