Derneburger

Derneburger

Website design

Derneburger is not a mass-market vodka, it's a heritage spirit distilled in a 13th-century monastery in Germany, with a bottle label designed by a renowned contemporary artist.

Role

Role

Lead UX/UI Designer

Aim

Aim

Create a website that doesn’t sell vodka but builds desire for it through story, art, and heritage.


Make the brand unforgettable before it becomes purchasable.

Challenges

Challenges

Instead of the usual product-first alcohol website, the design had to:

  • Introduce the vodka through its origin story, not its ingredients.

  • Celebrate the artist behind the bottle label.

  • Capture the atmosphere of the historic Derneburger monastery distillery.

  • Guide users toward buying without ever pushing them to buy.

Why it matters

Why it matters

Most alcohol brands online follow the same formula: bottle glamour shot > taste notes > buy button.

Derneburger didn’t want to compete in that space. They wanted a website that felt like walking through a gallery where the product is the final exhibit.


So the UX strategy centered around one principle:

Don’t advertise the brand, let the brand express itself.


That meant long-scroll storytelling, deep visuals, intentional pacing, and a color system built around historic German art influence.

Business challenge and brand context

Business challenge and

brand context

Business challenge and brand context

Derneburger is not a mass-market vodka, it's a heritage spirit distilled in a 13th-century monastery in Germany, with a bottle label designed by a renowned contemporary artist.


Gap:

“We have a premium product, a rich history, an artist behind the label but our brand story isn’t visible anywhere online.”

Research and insights

Research and insights

Research and

insights

Since the product had no existing site analytics, the research was built on:

  • Competitive Scan

  • Behavior Patterns of Luxury Buyers

  • Brand Storytelling Frameworks


Insights

  • Luxury spirits sell identity first, product second.

  • Buyers associate heritage & craft with trust & price justification.

  • Art & culture increase perceived value when integrated into product.

  • Alcohol brands with emotional story perform 3–5x better in recall tests.

Final outcome

Final outcome

Average scroll depth: 67%

Average time on site: 1m 30s

Brand recall: 40% remember the name after first visit

Bounce rate: 31% (luxury industry average: 50–60%)

Skills

Skills

UX/UI Design

Branding

Visual Identity

Rapid Prototyping

Research

QA Test

Animation

Wireframe

Links

Links

Full case study

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