When creating Manchester Rum, we knew the liquid inside the bottle was only part of the story.
After spending more than five years developing what would become our first aged spirit, we wanted every element of the final product to feel just as carefully considered as the liquid itself.
The challenge was clear.
Manchester Rum needed to feel connected to everything we had already built through The Spirit of Manchester Distillery, while carrying an identity entirely of its own.
Familiar but different. Recognisable but intriguing.
Something that reflected where we are today as a distillery.
Building On What Came Before
Over the last decade, Manchester Gin has become the spirit people know us for.
Its custom bottle has helped shape the identity people associate with our distillery, and as Manchester Rum developed, we knew we wanted to retain that connection.
The bottle is the heart of our brand and we knew what we created needed to remain part of the same family, and sit naturally alongside everything we have created so far.
But Manchester Rum was never intended to feel like simply another extension of Manchester Gin.
It needed its own identity.
Something more mature, more layered and more reflective of the spirit inside.
Creating A New Identity
One of the earliest design decisions we made was moving away from the bold Bee that has become so closely associated with Manchester Gin.
While it has played an important role in our identity for years, Manchester Rum needed to signal something different.
We wanted this bottle to carry more intrigue. More texture. More detail.
A design that invited a second look and immediately felt more reflective of the depth and complexity of the liquid itself.
The result needed to feel familiar enough to remain part of The Spirit of Manchester family, while standing confidently on its own.
The Creative Brief
When it came to designing Manchester Rum, we knew exactly what we didn’t want.
Manchester is a city with a rich industrial history and it would have been easy to lean into familiar references — mills, cotton, manufacturing and heritage.
But that never felt right for this project.
Manchester Rum represents where we are today as a distillery, and we wanted the bottle to reflect the Manchester we know now.
Modern. Architectural. Evolving. Confident.
To help bring that vision to life, we partnered with Fun Agency, who immediately understood what we were trying to achieve.
From the very beginning, the brief was simple. This was not about looking backwards. It was about capturing modern Manchester.
The Lightbulb Moment
Sometimes inspiration appears unexpectedly.
Driving into the distillery on a bright spring morning, surrounded by the skyline that now defines so much of Manchester city centre, something suddenly clicked.
Looking across the glass towers and modern architecture surrounding us, we noticed the strong vertical lines repeating across the buildings around the distillery.
It felt unmistakably Manchester. Not the city’s past. Its present. And its future.
We immediately pulled over, took photographs and sent them straight to the design team.
At that point, everything came together. We had found the direction.
The Skyline In The Label
Those architectural references became central to the final design.
The strong vertical detailing running across the front label directly reflects the modern skyline surrounding our distillery.
The silver-grey lines create structure, movement and quiet confidence while subtly mirroring the buildings that first inspired the concept.
For those who know Manchester well, the reference feels instantly familiar.
For everyone else, it simply feels beautifully considered. Exactly as we intended.
A Quiet Nod To Manchester Weather
There is another subtle detail hidden within the design.
The grey vertical detailing creates a second interpretation instantly recognisable to anyone who knows the city well.
Rain.
A quiet nod to the weather that has become synonymous with Manchester itself.
Even in the smallest details, we wanted this bottle to feel unmistakably connected to the city we proudly call home.
Created In Manchester. Inspired By Manchester.
Manchester Rum represents everything we love about creating spirits.
Thoughtful design.
Patience.
Attention to detail.
And a constant desire to keep refining what we do.
Every element of Manchester Rum has been carefully considered.
From the liquid inside the bottle…
To the city reflected on the outside.
Manchester Rum First Edition
Created in Manchester. Inspired by Manchester.
— Seb & Jen