Considering the number of down-and-outs swigging unabashedly from brown-paper bags throughout the land, you could be forgiven for not realizing that there’s never actually been a paper wine bottle. Never, that is, until this week, with the launch of Paperboy, which is being touted as much for its green credentials as for its 2012 red blend.
The bottle, designed by the UK’s GreenBottle, is made from compressed recycled paper and printed with natural inks, according to Drinks Business magazine. As they explain:
“While the outside of the bottle boasts a black ink retro graphic of a freckled, hollering paperboy, the inside contains a recyclable sleeve similar to those found in boxed wine.”
It should come as no surprise that the label graphics come to us courtesy of Stranger & Stranger – you will remember that its founder, Kevin Shaw, was the guest speaker for our most recent free webinar: “Designing Spirited Labels.” (You can still catch Shaw’s presentation here.)
According to Shaw, the bottle only required about 15% of the energy that glass bottles require in production; it also only weighs 1 ounce when empty. That’s fantastic when it comes to shipping costs…but absolutely worthless in a bar fight. Fight responsibly.
