A firm favourite amongst the traditional Manchester scene, Blackjack needed a brand that aligned with their strengths, sitting perfectly between the traditional world of CAMRA pubs, with floral pump clips and metal tankards, and the increasingly saturated world of progressive craft beer. It’s the meeting points of this tradition and modernity that we wanted to celebrate in BJBC’s visual aesthetic.
As a brewery proudly started and housed in a historical but forgotten part of Manchester, Angel Meadow, Blackjack had something that most other breweries of 12 years don’t have – a heritage story, not of their beer, but of their neighbourhood.
The process began with documenting, recreating and regenerating the found type of the area, from the decorative headstones of the meadow’s burial field and the Victorian stonework of the Ragged school, right through to the street signs and the more recent hand-painted signage of their taproom.
This gave life to a bespoke typeface, inspired by the neighbourhood around the brewery, BlackJack Meadow. A condensed sans serif with all the quirks and nuance of the days of old, crafted to bring texture to the stories of the Jack.
Beyond the typeface, stories and tales from the area, both known and unknown, are brought to life across the core range of beers, paired with a new naming system that celebrates the very cobbled streets that Blackjack raised from.
