Barkas’ identity for adult soft drink company Bitterschön takes you on a bittersweet nostalgia trip

Copenhagen and Stockholm-based design practice Barkas have gone on quite the nostalgia trip in their identity for Austrian soft drink company Bitterschön, in terms of both aesthetic and concept – returning to an era before the introduction of heavily sugared carbonated drinks in the latter half of the 20th Century. Sans-additives, or any other nasty bits, the company aims to be an adult soft drink to be savoured with or without alcohol. Approached with only an idea for a soft drink that isn’t detrimental to the health of the planet or the body, and the accompanying tasty recipes to go with it, Barkas were also involved in the naming of the soft drink. Landing on an adjustment to the German phrase ‘bitte schön’, meaning ‘you’re very welcome’ in English, the name appropriately refers to the tastiness of the drink and the manners of the brand’s intention. To an extent, Barkas’ typographic choices reflect this relationship; similarly to how the punch of the flavours compliments the gentle manner of the name, so too do the typographic pairing flatter one another. Using Queens for the logomark provides an immediate confidence due to the elegance but innate quirk of the typeface. Tightly kerned in a light, compressed weight, the design creates an assured tension between the letterforms, inspired by the bittersweetness of the drink. “We decided to type the letters ‘b’ and ‘s’ in italic,” Barkas explain, in order to help “distinguish the brand name from the well-known German phrase ‘bitte schön.’”