by Scott Pillsbury | Oct 4, 2024 | Customers/Examples
At Rose City Label, we believe that a wine’s label is just as important as the wine inside the bottle, and Blue Heron French Cheese Company’s Oregon Pinot Gris is a perfect example of what can happen when craftsmanship and creativity come together.
Let’s talk about why this label stands out.
First, the material: We used HP006 Bright White Felt, a textured, premium paper stock that gives the label a rich and tactile feel. You’re greeted with a sense of luxury when you touch the bottle. That texture enhances the overall experience and makes this Pinot Gris even more enticing before you’ve even poured a glass.
Now, the magic of the process: the HP6900 digital press, Delta die cutter, and Newfoil hot stamp press—this trio of printing technology ensures precise, high-quality results. What does that mean for this label? Sharp, detailed lines and rich, true colors. Everything pops with clarity and sophistication, whether it’s the delicate illustration of the heron or the elegant font choices.
Speaking of popping—let’s talk embellishments! We used clear gloss foil and embossing to elevate the design. The foil adds a sleek shine, making the label catch the light beautifully. It creates a high-end feel that draws the eye to the bottle from across the room. And that embossing? It gives the label depth, making the Blue Heron name and the heron illustration feel almost three-dimensional. You can actually feel the craftsmanship with every touch. This attention to detail sets it apart from ordinary wine labels.
In terms of design, the combination of the heron, soft blue tones, and classic typography evokes the coastal serenity of Tillamook, where Blue Heron French Cheese Company calls home. It’s a nod to the natural beauty of Oregon, a place known for its vibrant wine industry.
At Rose City Label, we love creating labels that tell a story, and this one speaks volumes about craftsmanship, elegance, and quality. Every time you pick up a bottle of Blue Heron Oregon Pinot Gris, you’re not just holding wine—you’re holding a piece of art that reflects the essence of both the wine and the region.
That’s why we take so much pride in what we do here at Rose City Label. We know that a well-crafted label like this can enhance the entire wine experience, and Blue Heron’s Pinot Gris is a shining example of how the right materials, press techniques, and embellishments can make a label truly unforgettable.
by Scott Pillsbury | Sep 13, 2019 | Beer Wine Spirits, Technical
Small Rolls are a Pain to Apply!
Many of our wine customers use a mobile bottling service like Signature or Casteel. Mobile bottlers are economical for many reasons, including inline label application. This video shows labels being applied on a Signature bottling line. Because of the speed and cost of these bottling lines, nobody wants down time. One of the things that can kill productivity is having to stop to change a label roll. Therefore, everyone wants rolls as large as possible – often up to 12-14″ in diameter.
Filling the Press Web is Cost Effective
The problem comes with our customers that do many small batches of wine. Some have 3-5 different blocks of grapes that each go into a specific, very special wine. If you only produce 50 cases of something, the label roll will never be very big – but it gets even worse! We try to be as cost effective as possible so we fill the press web (13″ wide paper in the press).
This image of a label in productions shows that we are running the label 3-across the web to save time and money for the customer. The press web is filled, allowing us to print 3 labels at a time. The problem, however, is that this results in even smaller rolls on the bottling line. If you print 900 labels (60 cases of a specialty wine), you will end up with 3 rolls of 300 each and a nightmare on the bottling line.
Wasting Material is Bad for Everyone
Not only does filling the web make the job more cost effective, it also saves the earth by wasting less paper. On our state of the art digital printing press, the machine requires a full 13″ web, regardless of the finished label size. This means if we want to print only one label across the web, we use 3x the paper for the run! And 3x the press time to get the job done. This is wasteful but also more expensive for the customer.
Splices are Bad, too!
Another (bad) option is splicing the three small rolls together. A splice is basically just taping three rolls together. This is bad because these splices frequently break on the bottling line due to high tension on the rolls. And, this also opens the option for a very big problem – accidentally splicing two different items onto the same roll! For these reasons, we don’t recommend splicing these small rolls.
Total Applied Cost
The label job isn’t really done until the label is on the bottle, in the retail store, and sold to a consumer. The cost of packaging is very complicated and much more than just the individual label price. The total applied cost – the final cost of the label on the bottle – is what really matters. For this reason, we have some very specific recommendations for small batch wineries.
You Decide – Our recommendation
Ultimately, the customer decides what is best for their particular situation. But, based on our 92 years of label experience, we strongly suggest you pay a bit more to get full sized rolls, without splices, to maximize your up time on the bottling line. This doesn’t apply to hand applied labels – only machine applied items on a high speed bottling line. Nobody likes to pay extra for labels, or to waste material, but for us, paying a bit more for the label is worth it to keep your total applied cost down.
Questions? Please call us today at 503-777-4711. We look forward to printing for you again very soon!
by admin | Sep 14, 2016 | Beer Wine Spirits, Environmental Green
Oregon businesses often lead the way when it comes to eco-friendly practices. We at Rose City Label are always on the lookout for new ways to reduce our impact on the local ecology. We’re also pretty enthusiastic about recognizing other local businesses that demonstrate their concern for the environment.
In some cases, those fellow Oregon businesses also happen to be Rose City Label clients. In recent years, the Pacific Northwest wine industry has seen a real shift towards sustainable business practices. From vineyard to bottling, we’ve seen a number of initiatives to “green up” our local wineries.
We Love Sustainable Oregon Wine Producers
Happily, sustainable Oregon wineries are getting due recognition for their efforts. Various news articles, online and in print, are giving praise to our state’s wine industry for its shift toward sustainable practices.
Of particular note is Rose City Label client Soter Vineyards. Their sustainability initiatives include multiple green certifications, in addition to the use of energy from renewable sources to produce their Willamette Valley varietals. In the Columbia River Gorge, Cerulean Wines is another of our clients who share our enthusiasm for sustainable business practices.
Salmon-Safe Vineyards
Several other Rose City Label clients have earned some well-deserved recognition for an array of sustainable practices. Over 200 Oregon and Washington vineyards carry a Salmon-Safe certification, and that number is sure to grow as awareness among farmers increases. Kudos to our clients who have led the way in Salmon-Safe grape cultivation:
If you’re interested in Salmon-Safe Certification for your vineyard, look for more information here.
Red, White, Rosé … and Green!
Looking for a more extensive list of “green” wine producers—or want to make sure your winery gets the eco-conscious recognition it deserves? You can find a detailed directory here, at one of our favorite wine-centric sites.
Happy tasting!
