Contemporary packaging marks the launch of the estate’s new creative niche within its fine wine portfolio
– Steenberg Vineyards has unveiled the visual identity and packaging for its new Canvas Collection, marking a significant evolution in the estate’s brand expression and positioning. Designed in collaboration with South African conceptual artist Athol Moult, the new labels introduce a contemporary, tactile design language that translates Steenberg Vineyards’ winemaking philosophy – rooted in place, craft and the human hand – into a distinctive visual system for the range.
The Canvas Collection was conceived as a small, creative niche within Steenberg Vineyards’ precise and focused portfolio, creating space for more expressive interpretations of site, blending and oak within Constantia’s cool-climate framework. The visual identity mirrors this intent, with the label itself conceived as a “canvas” – an open, restrained surface that allows the gesture of making to take centre stage.
“At Steenberg Vineyards, everything begins with place,” says Moult. “The swan sits at the heart of the farm’s origin story, so I carved a swan feather as the first mark, a way of holding the memory of the land in a single form. It speaks to the vines rooted in ancient soils, the pull of the sea, the shelter of the mountains, the movement of wind, and the quiet rhythm of hands at work. From there, each wine becomes a brushstroke upon the canvas.”
The resulting design moves away from conventional wine label storytelling, favouring abstraction over illustration. Generous negative space references the blank canvas and the moment before creation, while two expressive brushstrokes on each label signal the decisive creative act behind every blend. The carved feather functions as an underlying imprint of heritage and place, rather than a dominant emblem, allowing each wine to “author” its own expression within a cohesive visual language.
Materiality plays a central role in the packaging, with tactile, canvas-like stock and refined finishes reinforcing the idea of something made by hand rather than manufactured. Typography remains anchored in Steenberg Vineyards’ established visual identity, ensuring continuity with the broader brand while allowing the Canvas Collection to stand apart as a more expressive, contemporary extension of the estate’s portfolio.
“Luxury, for me, lies in restraint, precision and a moment of emotional expression,” Moult explains. “The design had to feel refined and premium, but also human. The brushstroke is deliberate, imperfect and tactile, much like the process of winemaking itself.”
The collaboration with Steenberg Vineyards’ leadership team ensured that the visual identity remained grounded in the estate’s heritage and winemaking philosophy. The design process drew on the story of the estate’s founder, Catharina Ras, whose pioneering spirit continues to inform the brand’s direction today, as well as Steenberg Vineyards’ internal “Hand That Leads” philosophy, which foregrounds the human touch behind every bottle: from vineyard to cellar to label.
“What distinguishes the Canvas Collection visually is its emphasis on authorship and process,” says Moult. “It feels like an evolution of the estate’s visual language, rooted in history, but confidently contemporary. It invites interpretation rather than explaining itself.”
The Canvas Collection comprises three wines, Semillon, Nebbiolo and Blanc, each treated as an equal creative expression within the range. None is visually elevated above the others, reinforcing the idea of the collection as a curated set of authored works rather than a hierarchy of products.
Beyond the bottle, the visual identity will be extended into the launch experience itself, with Moult creating three large-scale canvas artworks inspired by the labels to accompany the public unveiling of the collection. This physical translation of the label concept into artwork further reinforces the intent behind the Canvas Collection: not art placed on a wine label, but a visual language that reflects Steenberg’s way of working: restrained, confident, rooted in place, and shaped by the human hand.
About Steenberg Vineyards
Founded in 1682 and nestled in the Constantia Valley just 30 minutes from Cape Town, Steenberg is South Africa’s first registered wine estate and a benchmark for cool-climate Sauvignon Blanc and elegant red blends. Under the direction of Cellarmaster Elunda Basson, Chair of Sauvignon Blanc SA and Vice Chair of the Cap Classique Producers Association, the estate continues to deliver age-worthy wines of depth, minerality, and refinement. The estate also offers a full luxury experience, including a boutique hotel, spa, fine dining, and a world-class tasting room.
