Skënderbeu Brandy

Customer

ADOL

Origin

Albania

Expertise

Embossing

“We wanted to achieve new business objectives and to do so, we needed a special bottle that would represent our brand. Together with Hrastnik1860, we succeeded.“

Management of ADOL

The Story Behind

In Albania, the helmet of Gjergj Kastrioti, better known as Skanderbeg, is one of the country’s most recognisable historical symbols. His image can be found on monuments, in museums and throughout Albanian cultural heritage.

Skanderbeg lived from 1405 to 1468 and is remembered for leading Albanian resistance against the Ottoman Empire. His distinctive helmet, crowned with a goat’s head, has become closely associated with his legacy and Albania’s national identity.

The helmet combines several symbolic elements. Its shape resembles the traditional Albanian cap, known as the *plis*, while the goat’s head and decorative metalwork give it its unmistakable appearance. The original helmet also features a copper band bearing a monogram separated by rosettes.

For ADOL, the company behind Skënderbeu Brandy, this historic object provided the inspiration for a new glass bottle. The aim was to create packaging that would reflect the brand’s Albanian heritage while giving the product a distinctive appearance.

Turning a Historic Helmet

When ADOL decided to redesign its brandy packaging, the objective was clear: develop a bespoke bottle that would be immediately recognisable and closely connected to the brand’s history.

The helmet’s unusual shape, intricate surface details and decorative elements made it an ambitious design to reproduce in glass.

Vaider Group (formerly HRASTNIK1860) was responsible for translating the concept into a bottle suitable for industrial glass production.

The greatest technical challenge was the detailed embossing. Some of the decorative elements measured less than 1 mm, making their definition particularly demanding during the glass-blowing process.

The helmet’s geometry also required careful consideration. During production on an individual section (IS) machine, the mould must open without damaging or deforming the finished bottle. The unusual shape and relief details increased the risk of deformation, requiring adjustments to the original design.

The challenge was to preserve the helmet’s recognisable features while ensuring that the bottle could be manufactured consistently.

Embossed Details

The development team used Siemens NX software to analyse the bottle’s geometry and adapt the embossed elements to the requirements of glass production.

Particular attention was given to the depth, shape and positioning of the engraving. Several adjustments were made during the sampling process to improve the definition of the smallest details and prevent problems when opening the mould.

Achieving the desired relief also required adjustments to the IS machine settings. The mould temperature was increased to improve the reproduction of fine details in the glass.

Further corrections were carried out using precision CNC machining, allowing the mould surfaces and embossed elements to be refined.

Through successive adjustments to the 3D model, mould equipment and production settings, the team achieved a glass bottle that retained the helmet’s distinctive shape and detailed decoration.

The finished Skënderbeu Brandy bottle brings one of Albania’s best-known historical symbols into a new form, with the intricate embossing and unusual geometry made possible through precise glass manufacturing.