Branding Vancouver is a new column in which we look at some of the more interesting logos and icons that appear in Vancouver’s food and beverage scene. Some of the explanations will be long and others short, but the goal of deeper understanding will be constant. If you want the backstory of a particularly compelling local brand revealed, let us know via @scoutmagazine and we’ll try to figure it out.

The Brand: For this edition we spoke with Michael Shindler, producer of the Similkameen Valley’s A Sunday in August wines – “Beautiful, artisanal wines for awesome people.” Shindler’s wines caught our attention when they were featured at Maggie Boyd’s ceramics sale last year – and it’s easy to understand why! The labels are hand-painted works of art that are as suitable in picture frames as they are on bottles. They insinuate a transportive experience that will take the sipper somewhere dreamy and sunny…

Here’s what Shindler has to say about the inspiration behind the brand:

“I did a bunch of mood boarding for the brand. We wanted the brand to represent a feeling […] We jumped around a bit and then just kept coming back to A Sunday in August as it really encapsulates what we’re about. The design came from a want to be simple, to have one main colour, and have one main image on the label. The imagery needed to represent the brand, which is nice feelings, nice honest wine, made for young people. We wanted to have colour on the shelf as well and not have a stodgy bougey castle on the label. The wine is democratic wine! We also based the images on things we and our friends do in the summer like swimming, jumping off cliffs, rowing boats…lots of outdoor stuff.”

The Label: Original watercolour paintings by local artist, Gina MacKay (aka Women Talking Prints):

“Part of what I wanted to do is include real art in the labels and brand as well, so this next vintage will probably include some more artists and more cool stuff. Lastly, the brand is aspirational. We are constantly trying to influence the landscape of boozy bevs to include a sustainability aspect, a design/fun aspect, and a more adventurous wine aspect (meaning natural wine, which this next vintage is).”