Wuliangye is the name of the famous Chinese beverage, produced in Yibin, Sichuan Province. Its name can be translated from Chinese as “5 grains” because the raw materials used for its production are sticky and long-grain rice, corn, and wheat grains, and chaoliang. There are several varieties of the drink, which differ in strength (68, 52, and 39 degrees). Wuliangye has repeatedly received the title of “Famous National Chinese Vodka” due to its pure, subtle taste and pleasant, thick aroma.
The recipe for the drink was invented during the Song Dynasty (10-12th century A.D.) A unique recipe and a special technology of preparation are kept in secret up to the present day. For many years, the Wuliangye brand has been on the list of the most expensive and well-known trademarks of China.
In 2011 the Wuliangye advertisement was placed in New York Times Square. It became the first Chinese brand whose advertisement appeared in the heart of New York. And the following year, a new airport in Yibin, Wualingye’s hometown, was named after the drink.
In 2017, Wuliangye was awarded the title of the fastest-growing brand in the entire world. Today it is valued at ten and a half-billion dollars and ranks one hundredth on the list of “Top 500 global brands”.
So what was the logo, appeared on Times Square? The Wuliangye visual identity has been very stable throughout the years and still looks the same as decades ago. It is a red and white composition of a circular emblem and a name of the brand in Chinese, placed on its right.
The emblem depicts a stylized tower, drawn with five lines (four are arched from the center to the sides, and the central one is vertically straight), and a bold capital letter “W” enclosed into a red circular frame, set on the middle part of the “tower”. The whole image is set inside a bigger circle. Also in red.
Since 1957, the Chinese name of the brand has been present on its logo. Written in a bold yet extremely elegant handwritten font, its tenderness and chic are balanced with a straight and even primitive sans-serif “W” from the emblem.
The red and white color palette of the Wuliangye visual identity is all about passion and warmth. Although, red is one of the main colors of the National Chinese Flag, and is also used on the logos of almost all lathes brands of the country, which is pretty interesting.