DUDE Design Brews up Sacrosanct Branding for San Zorz Beer

The legend of St George slaying the dragon has been the subject of countless paintings, tapestries and even stained glass church windows. Now, for the first time, the iconic knight has been given a pop-art makeover and immortalised on beer bottles and cans - as the visual ambassador for Royal Unibrew’s beer brand, San Zorz.

Created by DUDE Design, the new visual identity and branding celebrates the beer’s cultural and geographical roots in Friuli, northeast Italy, an industrial region synonymous with authenticity, strong traditions and honest, hard-working people.
Launched as part of Royal Unibrew’s cultural mission to revive the historic Friulian brewery of San Giorgio and bring an authentic brewing tradition back to life, the beer connects past and present, embodying the region’s core values and no-frills, no-fuss ethos.

Tasked with capturing this distinctive blend of heritage, local identity and innovation, DUDE Design drew inspiration from the brewery’s famous namesake, San Giorgio (St George), also the patron saint of the region. Reimagined in a pop-art style, futuristic illustration, the iconic figure sits at the heart of the new branding - bridging local mythology and contemporary culture and offering a modern-day take on a historic legend.

The product’s hyper-local credentials are also celebrated in the name ‘San Zorz’ - a phonetic reinterpretation of ‘San Giorgio’ in the Friulian dialect. With its familiar sound, evoking a friend’s shout at the bar, the beer literally speaks the language of its homeland. Meanwhile, the logo design symbolically nods to the region’s deep spirituality, by subtly reimagining the letter ‘O’ in the product name as St George’s halo. The details of the illustrations in the background are a nod to the landscape of San Giorgio di Nogaro, located between the Dolomites and the Marano lagoon, thus celebrating the strong connection with the Friuli territory.

Combining carefully chosen colours, shapes and symbols, the resulting branding brings a landscape defined by nature, effort, pride, and resilience to life in a visually coherent and meaningful way designed to stand out in the market and resonate with local audiences.

Silvia Boscaro, marketing manager San Zorz, said, “We chose Friuli, and Friuli inspired us. With the acquisition of the historic brewery in San Giorgio di Nogaro, Royal Unibrew celebrates its new roots with San Zorz: a proud, authentic beer, produced in the heart of this land. Born from a deep connection with the local culture, San Zorz is our tribute to Friuli, its people, and a tradition that honours us. It is a beer that speaks Friulian, born where everything comes to life. With this new challenge, a new chapter is written in the brewing history of Friuli, one that blends tradition and innovation, giving rise to a path of growth and enhancement of our territory”.

​Lorenzo Picchiotti, CCO and partner DUDE Design, added, “We like many things about this project: the direct, no-frills tone, the desire to break the classic codes of beer communication while remaining pop, and the link with a territory, Friuli, which often speaks softly but has a lot to say. But above all, it allowed us to build a brand from scratch. And there is nothing more beautiful, for those who do our job”.

See more work from DUDE here.