Corby has freshened up its McGuinness Mixables liqueur lineup with help from design and creative agency, Pigeon.

Corby’s brand now boasts a “a contemporary, fresh and playful design providing endless inspiration to cocktail enthusiasts.”

The refresh affects a product line that includes Blue Curacao, Triple Sec, Peppermint Schnapps and Apricot Brandy.

“Our goal with the redesigned lineup of was to showcase that McGuinness Mixables not only indulges the imagination, but also empowers individuals to express their own mixology skills,” said Caroline Begley, vice president of marketing at Corby Spirit and Wine, who tells strategy there’s currently a program in LCBO with a McGuinness-branded shaker as a gift with purchase under the company’s new brand identity.

“The design intention was an invitation to a world of flavours, [so] we elevated the flavour appeal with fruit illustrations, juiciness and dynamic splashes,” Begley says.

The distiller leveraged the existing black brandmark and evolved it to maximize the visibility and impact of the brand, enlarging and vertically orienting it.

The idea behind the design is that the brand occupies a prominent part of the packaging to ensure stand out on shelf, she explains, while the vertical system in which the brand now fits is inspired by a cocktail stir stick to capture the feeling of stirring up a flavourful cocktail, while reinforcing the brand’s contemporary and premium dimension.

“The overlapping of the logo on the flavour illustrations offers a strong contrast to the eyes, also maximizing the stand out on shelf,” Begley says.

Pigeon started the brand’s redesign in 2022, and its target is cocktail enthusiasts.

The repositioned McGuinness Mixables lineup is now available at select retailers, bars and restaurants across Canada.

In its recent February earnings call, parent company Corby, which also manufactures Kahlua and Cabot Trail liqueurs, reports that spirits are “in slight decline,”