Case Study: Tea West
Sierra Nevada Goes Beyond Beer
The Challenge
Craft beer was losing ground. Consumers were gravitating toward hard seltzers, ready-to-drink cocktails, and anything but IPA. Sierra Nevada needed a way into this space—a new drink, a new brand, and a new consumer.
Market research pointed to hard tea—an emerging category with massive growth but no real craft-driven option. But launching just another hard tea wouldn’t cut it. The brand needed a distinct personality that would connect with the right audience.
The Question That Changed It All
I approached this the way I would any brand: by defining the person behind it. If Sierra Nevada had a little sister who just graduated from San Diego State, what would she be like?
She’d be effortless, fun, a little irreverent. She’d have that West Coast energy—laid-back but sharp. She wouldn’t overthink things. And most importantly, she’d want a drink that fit into her life, not one she had to learn how to like.
This perspective became the foundation for Tea West.
The Breakthrough
To find this consumer’s voice, I leaned on my years as the creative lead at Lulus.com, where fast fashion thrived on trend-conscious, in-the-know shoppers.
I wasn’t the Tea West consumer, but I understood her. I knew what she cared about, how she talked, and what brands she gravitated toward. And when I didn’t, I reached out to my network—former colleagues from the fashion world, people who lived this lifestyle—to define the space in a way that felt real.
The result was a brand that wasn’t just another hard tea—it had a personality of its own.
The Execution
The design and messaging needed to reflect the consumer’s world:
Nostalgic, sun-faded colors that hinted at early ‘90s energy.
Pun-driven, effortless flavor names like Lemon the Dream, Peachy Keen, and Radberry.
A social-first voice that felt casual and relatable, like a text from a friend.
Simple, direct iconography that quickly connected drinking occasions to the consumer.
This wasn’t just about creating another beverage. It was about building a lifestyle brand that felt like it had always existed.
The Result
In its first year, Tea West became one of the top five hard tea brands in distribution and sales. In year two, the brand introduced a new flavor, Mint to Be Strawberry, along with a variety pack, securing Sierra Nevada a foothold in the beyond-beer category.
Ultimately, Tea West was discontinued due to internal brewing logistics, but the project proved a few key things:
I know how to define a brand’s personality and voice.
I can step into a consumer mindset—even when it’s not my own.
I bring unconventional experience, like fashion e-commerce, into the craft world to create fresh, effective solutions.
Not every brand lasts, but the ones that work do so because they feel real.
Project Credits
Creative Director / Art Director: Valerie Murphy
Brand Director: Kyle Ingram
Creative Consultant: Brittany Nicholes
Design Team: Ashley Troutman
Photography/Videography: Kevin Lara
