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March 2017 WINES&VINES 59 PACKAGING costs $1.36. Bottle tags are indi- vidually affixed, and each bottle is hand-dipped in wax. Cartons are special orders, too, and carry only nine bottles each. These bottles are truly a labor of love for Colucci, who designed the package featuring a portrait of his wife's grandmother. Bruni, which was acquired by Berlin Packaging in November 2016, serves the West Coast from its office in Fair- field, Calif. The I t a l i a n c o m - pany sponsors The Bruni Glass Design Award competition, a biennial contest, and puts the winning concepts into its manu- facturing portfolio. Senior sales consultant Mari- lyn Gapp noted that these special- ized bottles usually are employed for higher end wine to make it distinguishable and imply a story to tell. Many clients are small op- erations like Barterra, but even mega-corporations looking to ex- pand their markets may adopt them, especially to drive interest in their wine clubs. Clearly these outstanding bot- tles, which demand higher prices and additional costs for label application and bottling, are aimed at the luxury market. Despite Coluc- ci's comment that wine in a jug might taste dif- ferent, at least one es- tablished winery has gone back to the jug for one of its pre- mium wines. Jug-eared Rōtta Winery, a 3,000-case, c e n t u r y - o l d family opera- tion in Tem- pleton, Calif., was engaging in a redesign, but owner Sebastian B u d e g u e r a l s o wanted to honor its 1 0 0 - y e a r h i s t o r y. The result is an up- dated but still retro 2-liter jug of its 60% C a b e r n e t S a u v i g n o n and 40% Zinfandel field blend aged in 100% French oak. A scant 500-bottle annual run is sold exclusively through the wine club and tasting room for KEY POINTS In North America, wine bottles that diverge from standard shapes and colors remain a rarity. Wineries that choose them for special releases feel they are worth the price to garner attention. Not only do the bottles cost more at the outset, but label design and bottling lines for these purchases will demand extra attention as well. Jugs can be attractive to consumers if they are thoughtfully designed. Fortified wines and blends are the most popular candidates for unusual bottles. Custom bottles F R O M C O N C E P T T O R E A L I T Y GP166698 Select from our premium bottles or custom design the ideal bottle, pewter label or other packaging solution to promote and sell your agship wines. Glass bottle specialists West Coast info@globalpackage.net 707 224-5670 globalpackage.net East Coast usa@estal.info 305 443-7451 www.estal.com/en R ˉ o tta Winery turned preconceived notions about jug wine upside down by packaging its $48 tasting room exclusive in a retro 2-liter jug.