You’ve made the world’s most coveted Irish whiskey. This audit is about the world that surrounds it.
The product, the packaging and the craft behind both are at the very top of the global category. The brand world that holds them has not yet caught up. This is an external view of where that gap sits, and what it could look like to close it.
The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. has spent the best part of a decade returning Irish whiskey to its rightful place at the top of the global category. Founded by Jay Bradley in Dublin, it combines centuries of Irish whiskey tradition with modern science.
The Devil’s Keep was named Best Irish Single Malt at the World Whiskies Awards 2022. The Emerald Isle, in collaboration with Fabergé, became the most expensive whiskey in the world. The Donn was named Whisky of the Year at the Asia Spirits Ratings 2025. Forbes named Jay Bradley one of the world’s eight best whiskey blenders.
The whiskey is on the menus of more than 60 Michelin-starred restaurants and in the collections of the world’s most discerning collectors.
Ultra-premium Irish whiskey
Wider luxury reference set: Karuizawa, G&M Connoisseurs Choice, Diageo Prima & Ultima, Bowmore, Macallan.
Before whiskey was anything else, it was Irish.
But somewhere along the way the story changed.
The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. is here to put Irish whiskey back where it belongs,
by combining whiskey tradition with modern craft,
and reminding the world the most sought-after whiskey is still spelled with an ‘e’.
One of the most considered product design systems in global spirits. Each release is its own world: bottles, boxes, gold, glass, leather and carafes crafted with the same obsession as the whiskey. The wordmark, website and wider brand world feel a step behind.
01Naming
A strong, declarative name that sets a clear standard to live up to. There’s space to lean further into ‘craft’ as a strategic territory across the brand.
02Logo
The interlocking C, I, W, C monogram with Celtic interlace is one of the strongest assets the brand owns, but it sits politely in a corner as a corporate signature. We’d make it a hero asset, and unify the couple of logo versions in use.
03Brand family
Look at the whole ‘Craft’ architecture (sub-brands, distilleries, members’ clubs) to make sure it all works together.
04Colour system
Black and antique gold avoid the green Irish cliché, at the cost of a visual link to Irish heritage. Evolve the gold gradient, and define primary, secondary and accent roles plus rules for gold on screen versus print.
05Typography
A display serif with an all-caps sans: competent and luxury-conventional, but not ownable. Introduce a typographic voice as bespoke as the monogram and the bottles.
06Imagery
Product photography is excellent: cinematic, low-key and material-led. Lifestyle and editorial imagery is less consistent and sometimes relies on generic luxury tropes.
07Motion & video
Lots of branded content, very little brand motion, and what exists feels familiar for the category. A short library of lower-thirds and logo animations would give the team consistent tools.
08Website
Among the most expensive whiskey in the world, on a site that feels like a luxury template from several years ago. A flagship digital experience worthy of the product is the single biggest opportunity.
09Event presence
The Selfridges Wonder Room and Soho Whisky Club partnership show what the brand can do in physical space. Systemise it so every event draws from the same toolkit.
Consistent and collectable, but familiar.
01Tone
Consistent, with a strong emphasis on craftsmanship and collectability. But much of it sits within established luxury whiskey and Scotch norms, so it feels familiar even on first read. More distinct language gives you more to own.
02Craft
The whiskey is described in abstract, high-level statements that are vague about the specifics of bottling rare liquid. It reads more like a guide to whiskey principles than the story of your own product.
03Story
When Jay speaks, the story of Irish whiskey and the brand’s place within it becomes evocative and exciting. We’d love to capture more of that on the website itself. Less is often more.
Build a brand worthy of the product
The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. operates at the very top of the global luxury spirits category in product, craft and awards. The brand identity and world around those products have not caught up.
- World’s most expensive whiskey
- Best Irish Single Malt, World Whiskies Awards
- Whisky of the Year, Asia Spirits Ratings 2025
- A’Design Platinum, perfect score
- Founder named in Forbes’ top 8 blenders globally
- Stocked in 60+ Michelin-starred restaurants
- Partners include Fabergé, MJ Jones, Cohiba, Michelin
- Sold at Selfridges
- Wordmark and brand system a step behind the products
- Website reads as a dated luxury template
- Limited consistent art direction across imagery and motion
- Inconsistent gold and palette use
- Hospitality and event presence ad hoc, not systemised
- No visual system tying releases together as a family
- A founder-led brand that relies on Jay’s presence
Impact of the gap
The brand presents as a confident challenger Irish whiskey company. The product presents as a Hermès, Patek or Rolls-Royce equivalent. The work is to close that gap so every touchpoint feels like it belongs in the same room as the bottle.
- Underplays the calibre of the product
- Reduces perceived value at first impression
- Makes the brand harder to spot among standard luxury templates
- Misses the chance to compound equity across releases
- Leaves the world’s best Irish whiskey company looking like a very good one
- Stronger design will help if you enter the consumer market at more accessible prices
The luxury spirits category is in its most significant shift in a generation.
Brand opportunity
A brand world that matches the calibre of the product would establish the company as the definitive luxury Irish whiskey brand of this era, with one coherent toolkit across digital, packaging, hospitality, partnerships and press.
Strategic timing
The next collector-tier launch, Michelin programme or major partnership becomes the moment the brand world steps up to meet the product.
Market momentum
- Collectors seeking genuine scarcity
- Irish whiskey forecast to grow by USD 1.54bn (2021 to 2026)
- Premium and ultra-premium outpacing the wider category
- Rare whiskey increasingly treated as an asset class
- Auction houses building dedicated whiskey programmes
- A distinct opening for an Irish entrant at Macallan-level positioning
Business momentum
- World-class range across taste and design awards
- Founder named one of the world’s top 8 blenders
- Established global retail and hospitality footprint
- Active partnerships with Fabergé, MJ Jones, Cohiba, Michelin
- New releases on the horizon and proven collector demand
Put the craft into The Craft Irish Whiskey Co.
The whiskey is crafted. The packaging is crafted. The monogram is crafted. The brand world around them should be held to exactly the same standard.
This isn’t a rebrand of the assets the team is rightly proud of. It’s the design and discipline of the world around them, with every touchpoint treated with the obsession Jay applies to a cask.
- 01Update and unify core brand assets: logos, monogram, type
- 02Build a flagship digital experience worthy of the product
- 03Tighten and codify the colour and material palette
- 04An art direction system across photography and motion
- 05A brand-wide library of designed templates and materials
- 06Systemise event, hospitality and partnership presence
- 07Extend into collector-tier merchandise and editorial
- 08A verbal identity drawn from the language of whiskey-making
