Badger Beer, from Hall & Woodhouse, brewed in Dorset since 1777, is unveiling a new brand identity across its entire business and range of products, marking one of the biggest branding changes in its 240-year history.

Following extensive consumer and trade research, Badger Beer is injecting £1.25m into the rebrand which includes a new brand logo and packaging identity, new integrated marketing communications spanning digital, social and print, on and off-trade activation and a new website www.badgerbeers.com which will go live this week.

The company is run by the seventh generation of the Woodhouses and the changes are designed to better reflect the family-owned company’s Dorset heritage and its 240 years of expertise in crafting characterful beer, whilst modernising the brand and appealing to a broader consumer group.

The new, six-strong range comprises The Legendary Tangle Foot; Fursty Ferret; Golden Champion; Hopping Hare; The Cranborne Poacher; and The Blandford Fly. All the beers are available in 500ml glass bottles. Tangle Foot, Fursty Ferret and Badger Best Bitter are also available on cask exclusively in Hall & Woodhouse’s pub estate across the South of England, and Tangle Foot and Fursty Ferret are available in 500ml cans.

The new packaging features a new Badger logo which emphasises the brand’s heritage and Dorset provenance alongside its iconic, thoughtful-looking badger which now takes centre stage. The logo has been moved to the more prominent neck label to give each bottle its own individual identity. The bottles also now carry an embossed established date of 1777, furthering the brand’s quality cues.

Anthony Woodhouse, Managing Director of Hall & Woodhouse, says: “We are extremely proud of our family’s 240-year brewing heritage in crafting a diverse range of characterful beers and are delighted to be unveiling our new look Badger identity and range to bring this further to life. The marketplace has moved on at pace in the last few years and it was time to update our brand, making it more contemporary and relevant to the evolving beer consumer. Our range of crafted beers appeal to many different tastes, drinking occasions and seasons, and we needed to reflect this in our brand and packaging.”

Gwen Ridsdale, Head of Marketing and Sales at Badger Beer, continues: “We spent a lot of time listening to our customers, shoppers and consumers and took this opportunity to refocus the brand and make more of what Badger Beer stands for. Our beers have been brewed in Dorset since 1777, by the independently owned Hall & Woodhouse family, yet our research showed that not everyone was aware of the depth and richness of this genuine history.

“Our products now contain many more references to our rich Dorset heritage: for example, our previous product Poacher’s Choice is now called The Cranborne Poacher, after a local Dorset village. Likewise, Blandford Flyer has been renamed back to its original name of Blandford Fly as this nasty little fly, resident to Blandford, Dorset, with a sting in its tail, is what inspired this beer, with its uniquely sweet yet spicy ginger kick. We have also reduced the ABV of two of our products without compromising on taste; Golden Champion has been reduced from 5% to 4.5% and Tangle Foot cask from 5% to 4.7%, in response to consumer drinking trends.

“We are focused on building on the brand’s rich heritage and positioning it for continued success and growth over the next 240 years.”

Further details on all the beers:

• The Legendary Tangle Foot (5% abv and 4.7% abv in cask format) is a deceptively drinkable golden ale, made from the finest English Flagon barley and Goldings and Challenger hops. The ale has a balanced flavour of crisp malt and subtle hops, with a delicate pear drop aroma.
• The Fursty Ferret (4.4% abv and 4.1% abv in cask format) is a morishly malty, amber ale. Its dark crystal malt delivers a full-bodied biscuit taste, rounded off with a subtle floral and lemon hop aroma.
• The Golden Champion (4.5% abv) is a bright golden ale with floral hints of elderflower. It is a light and refreshing ale with a crisp taste of summer.
• The Hopping Hare (4.4% abv) is a refreshing light hoppy ale. It is a marriage of aromatic citrus American Amarillo and Cascade hops and the finest English Flagon barley.
• The Cranborne Poacher (5.7% abv) is a bold, fruity, ruby ale. It uses crystal and chocolate malts to provide a full-bodied taste with sweet, complex flavours of damson and liquorice.
• The Blandford Fly (5.2% abv) is a uniquely sweet and spicy golden ale with a refreshingly different ginger taste which is offset with hints of sweet toffee.