From Haring to Pharrell, artist-designed bottles make drinks as visually striking as they are enjoyable.
WORDS Jo Buitendach PHOTOS Supplied
Whether it’s cognac or craft gin, alcohol brands are enlisting artists to create striking bottles and labels, turning drinks into collectables and packaging into a canvas. It’s more than decoration: with advertising restrictions tightening and shelves crowded with lookalike bottles, design has become a way to stand out, spark conversation and borrow cultural clout.
Hennessy’s collaborations with street artists such as Faith47 and Shepard Fairey have become iconic, while craft distillers commission illustrators and designers to give small-batch spirits a distinct identity. The trend speaks to a new kind of drinking culture, where what’s outside the bottle matters as much as what’s in it.
Moët & Chandon Impérial Brut
Moët & Chandon’s collaboration with Grammy winner and Louis Vuitton men’s creative director Pharrell Williams reimagines the house’s historic bow as the star motif of a limited-edition collection launched in March 2025. The 750ml Impérial Brut (about R700) is dressed in red, blue or gold, with a pearl-like monogram and dotted accents. It offers flavours of green apple and citrus brightness, fl oral mineral notes, and the richness of brioche, fresh nuts and cereal.
For collectors, the Impérial Jeroboam 3L, limited to just 30 bottles, is hand-painted by Astrid de Chaillé with 89 pearl-like beads and topped with a beaded bow by Paris atelier Baqué Molinié. The Jeroboam is priced at $30 000. | moet.com
Absolut Haring Artist Edition
Absolut launched a limited-edition bottle celebrating the late Keith Haring nearly 40 years aft er the pop artist first reimagined the iconic Absolut bottle. In 1986, Haring, encouraged by Andy Warhol, created four lithographs, one of which became the face of Absolut’s campaign.
Absolut Haring Artist Edition revives Haring’s bold lines, electric colours and dancing figures, bringing his joyful style to a new generation. The launch also includes Absolut Haring Fizz, a signature cocktail blending apple, orange, toasted sesame and ginger, with a golden-yellow hue that mirrors the vibrancy of Haring’s artwork. | absolut.com
Izinyembezi Zenkosikazi: Tears of The Queen
When Queen Victoria learnt of the British defeat at Isandlwana in 1879, legend has it she wept into her whisky. Since then, isiZulu speakers have called Scotch whisky izinyembezi zenkosikazi – the queen’s tears. That history now inspires the South African Artists Limited Edition whisky series – numbered, cask-strength single malts, with labels by leading artists:
- No.1 – a 14-year-old Bruichladdich Port Charlotte with William Kentridge’s ink drawing of a Reef mineshaft.
- No.2 – an 18-year-old Bruichladdich, featuring Lady Sings the Blues by Sam Nhlengethwa.
- No.3 – an 18-year-old Arran with Mary Sibande’s Wielding the Collision of the Past, Present and Future.
A fusion of fine whisky and contemporary art, the series is designed for collectors and connoisseurs. For details, email anton@harber.co.za.
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