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Craft Distillery

ing solutions for multiple applications, from design- The white indicates a specialty label while the
ing product bottles and the boxes used to hold black indicates a release that is always available,”
them to the corrugated displays used in stores. Thrasher says. “Our graphic is meant to evoke the
ocean. The edge of the label features the sketching
SourcePak regards the primary, secondary and of ship rope, and the curved designs at the center
tertiary levels of packaging as equals. Primary pack- are meant to be representative of waves. The let-
aging holds the actual product in place, secondary tering and general aesthetic are meant to be remi-
packaging identifies the brand and product infor- niscent of the labeling you would expect to see on
mation, and the tertiary layer protects the product packages being loaded onto old cargo ships. These
during shipping. The company provides multiple nautical and maritime elements are personal to
protection options for the third packaging stage, me. I am an avid scuba diver, and Thrasher’s Rum
including cushion pallets, custom foam case inserts, was actually inspired by my rum-soaked adven-
foam fabrication and assembly and antistatic poly- tures island hopping as a scuba dive instructor. Our
ethylene. labeling and choice in graphics are a playful nod to
those experiences.”
Another service that SourcePak offers is val-
ue-added packaging. These are customized packag-
ing options, such as brandy packaged with a snifter,
that create an added value to the consumer and
give the spirit a competitive edge.

Manual Packaging

Instead of semi-automatic, automatic and out-
sourced options, some distilleries choose to pack-
age manually.

Potomac Distilling Company, located in one of the
newest waterfront developments in Washington,
D.C., makes Thrasher’s Rum. The distillery, which
opened in 2018, produces six rum varieties: tra- Packaging for distilleries must meet food and
ditional white rum, gold rum, coconut rum, white beverage industry standards to ensure consumer
spiced rum, relaxed rum and a flagship green rum, safety. At the same time, packaging must also be
the latter infused with six aromatic botanicals. attractive enough to draw consumers to the prod-
uct. This careful balance requires the expertise of
Owner Todd Thrasher says that besides cost, he companies that know how to design packaging with
decided to assemble his packaging manually to pro- consumer appeal in mind, meet industry and safe-
tect the environment. ty standards and, ultimately, allow distilleries to
swiftly move inventory from shipping to shelf to the
“We package Thrasher’s Rum in cardboard boxes shopping carts of customers.
with biodegradable peanuts. We strive to be as
environmentally conscious as possible when it
comes to packaging. One aspect that is unique
about our bottles of Thrasher’s Rum is the wax seal
on the top of the bottle. It was important for us to
reduce the amount of plastic throughout our oper-
ation and when it comes to packaging.”

Thrasher adds that manually packaging his prod-
ucts does not mean skimping on aesthetics, indus-
try safety standards or product branding.

“In terms of labeling, we utilize two label colors.

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