Drink Styling for 805 Beer

ASSIGNMENT

805 Beer was launched by Firestone Walker Brewing Company in 2012 as a local blonde ale for California's Central Coast. It was originally created to serve the tri-county area (San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties) before rapidly gaining popularity and expanding its distribution, becoming a top national craft beer brand within three years. Originally released as a draught-only beer, with cans later introduced in 2014—due to high demand, it began expanding outside its local area by 2016. Fast forward to 2025, in anticipation of shooting their 2026 primary commercial campaign, I was tapped (pun intended!) as their first ever beer stylist. 

By bringing on a professional beverage stylist, the intention was to create a more premium, elevated product look, similar to the production value of bigger beer brands like Modelo and Budweiser. When you are making a significant investment in photography and videography production, it pays to have a dedicated drink stylist on set to make sure the product looks tip-top in every shot—especially when it’s a lively set with lots of moving parts, talent enjoying beer, and behind-the-scenes production people! 

My role in beer styling on this shoot was making sure the condensation felt natural and evenly distributed with droplets and ice chunks kept minimal, the liquid itself appearing lively and freshly poured, with visible carbonation and effervescence, while pint glasses were finished with a clean, appealing foam head. The overall vibe were were going for was polished, but authentic. 

Some alternate shots featured lightly frosted glasses to suggest a chilled pour, with organic, uneven condensation that gives a natural, just-served feel, and intentionally steering away from overly frozen glass in favor of a subtle frost that looked believable on camera.