In 1946 George Orwell, who was unwell at the time, asked his friend David Astor for a loan of his remote Scottish farmhouse in which to write his new book. The writer then took the pilgrimage to the small island of Jura to escape the irritations of London, a situation he described as forcing him to feel like he was becoming “more and more like a sucked orange.”

Orwell revelled in the isolation and wild beauty of Jura, drawing inspiration to go on and create one of his most famous works, the dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four – tale of a totalitarian future society in which a man whose daily work is rewriting history tries to rebel by falling in love.

Now, Jura distillery has released a small quantity of its excellent single malt, casked in 1984 and bottled thirty years later, to create a limited edition malt in honour of Orwell’s work – the 1984 vintage. There are only 1,984 of the individually numbered bottles available worldwide, with a retail price of £750. Matured in American White Oak, Amoroso and Apostoles Oloroso sherry butt casks, the whisky itself has a robust, fruity character. Responsible for the fantastic packaging of Jura 1984 is design agency jkr.

“Playing on the core theme of censorship, which is as prevalent today as it has ever been, we wanted the design of Jura 1984 Vintage to reflect a sense of oppression and mistrust. This idea was expressed through redacted text achieved by die cutting the outer box so it would ‘censor’ the words on the bottle within. The result was two texts with very different meanings; the outer dark and menacing, the inner bottle text hopeful and poetic. Using this idea across all branded platforms enabled us to reinforce the idea of hidden meanings and dualities through the design”, said Sean Thomas, Creative Director at jkr London.

jkr designed the Jura 1984 Vintage bottle and outer box and worked in partnership with the Jura team to create the brand’s supporting collateral beyond pack (including media packs, sample vials and a website lockdown).

An outstanding piece of packaging that celebrates the premium whisky and brings to life one of the most significant novels of the 20th century.

Designed by jkr

Client: Jura

Country: United Kindom

City: London