We all know that a picture is worth a thousand words. But what about color? If graphic designer Paula Rupolo's recent experiment in which she switched several major brands' color schemes is any indication, it's worth at least that many words, if not more.

Not only do we associate specific colors with many of today's major brands, when we encounter different colors, we react to and perceive each one in very different ways. Color can evoke excitement or convey calm, inspire creativity or elicit a sense of security.

To put it simply, as creatives, we simply can't ignore color's effects in what we create.

Over the last several months, we've started posting colors that inspire us on social media and have enjoyed talking about and seeing the images and emotions they inspire in others. As a follow up, we've decided to carry the discussion onto our blog and highlight a selection of products, brands, and designs that use each color in smart, powerful ways.

Cabernet Sauvignon aka Burgundy, Maroon, Crimson

For our first color, we picked a deep, berry red we like to call "Cabernet Sauvignon." As its name suggests, the dark, purplish red is reminiscent of red wine, winter berries, and elegant royal robes. "The color make[s] me feel elegant," Tweeted @J_Santi_Designs, "I can just imagine myself sitting somewhere fancy drinking this wine." Not surprisingly, the color is often associated with fine wines, rich foods, and individuals or businesses who want to create an image of themselves or their products as refined, established, or classically romantic.

Inspired to use Cabernet Sauvignon in your own work? Curious how others have harnessed its robust character and luscious look in their projects? Just read on for a look at how different designers and companies have used Cabernet Sauvignon in their own branding, website design, packaging and advertising to create powerful pictures of richness, warmth, nobility, luxury and cultivation.

Classic Branding

1. Borderless Wine //

For this fine wine distributor in Europe, the use of wine color in their logo and across their company collateral not only depicts the rich, robust flavors of the products they carry; it perfectly accents the golden crest at the center of their logo with its own sense of royalty and refinement.

2. Hall Wines //

Using such a rich red in their logo, across their website, and on their wine bottles, the Hall Winery not only alludes to the robust flavor of their wine but gives their brand a valuable sense of establishment and sophistication far beyond their 8 years in the business.

3. Vivino Wine App //

Vivino doesn't sell wine, but their app is centered on it… and so is the color of their logo and on screen icons. Its robust hue not only associates flat tech with rich taste but presents its network of user-generated wine reviews as more cultivated than those of average web users.

4. La Campana Ice Cream Parlor //

La Campana's branding is modern, but their use of deep, wine red in their logo, on their menus, and in their décor alludes to both the rich, creamy flavor of their ice cream and an established heritage that paints their restaurant and recipes as more than just a trendy pop up or empty sugar high.

5. Cleveland Cavaliers //

Burgundy and crimson are no strangers to sports. And when the Cleveland Cavaliers reimaged their logo in 2010, their shift from a bright orange red to a deeper wine colored hue didn't just better reflect their mascot's regal roots, the change was directly motivated by their desire to appeal to their team's classic heritage.

Refined Website Designs

6. Beam Inc. //

As the only color on Beam Inc.'s white and grey website design, the deep red used in their logo, headlines, and navigational icons supports the site's refined design while also adding boldness and highlighting the robust legacy and rich history which they have made a prominent part of their brand identity.

7. Griggs Homes //

Used in their logo, headlines, and navigation bars throughout their website, the refined red that the family-owned construction company Grigg's Homes uses directly reflects the very words they use to describe their developments across their website itself: prestigious, distinctive, and luxurious.

8. Volkswagen Polo //

On Volkswagon's Norwegian website, each model's page is defined by a different color. For the Polo, a range of deep berry reds used as background colors and on upscale awnings in the featured photograph tie the Polo to a more refined lifestyle and position it as the luxury model in a line of relatively sporty cars.

9. L'Wren Scott for Banana Republic //

While L'Wren Scott's new collection includes several bright orange reds, the emphasis on deep, wine colored reds in its initial introduction on Banana Republic's home page appeals to a more feminine sense of passion and romance and emphasizes the sophistication and glamour the collection was "designed to inspire."

10. Fledgling Wine //

A wine company can't go wrong using deep, wine colored reds to evoke the rich flavor of their products. But at Fledgling Wine, a literacy non-profit, the more feminine quality of the berry tinted red on their website emphasizes not just the character of their wine, but the compassion at the core of their company.

Rich Ruby Packaging

11. Absolute Raspberri Vodka //

Absolute's Raspberri Vodka packaging used to be dominated by a blood red bottle. With the recent redesign, the bottle features a more purple hued, berry red, a range of pinks, and a clear bottle for a lighter look that emphasizes its rich berry flavor while still setting it apart from heavier wines and fruit liquors.

12. Earth & Vine Pomegranate Mixer //

Like many wine vendors, Earth & Vine matches the color of its Pomegranate Pink Grapefruit mixer in its packaging. The result, a bottle broadcasting a berry red so rich and fruity, you can almost taste its sweet sumptuous flavor without even opening it.

13. Joe's Berry Best Tea //

Hitting the perfect balance between too cool berry blues and too alarming bright reds, the dark berry reds used in this berry tea packaging communicate not only the tea's fruity flavor, but also an enveloping sense of warmth as well as the rich culture and heritage behind its brand.

14. Dr. Pepper Anniversary Can //

Although Dr. Pepper uses dark red in almost all of their standard packaging, on their vintage style anniversary cans, the use of a richer, reddish purple hue is the perfect choice to emphasize the brand's heritage and use of classic ingredients like real sugar.

15. Kallo Dark Chocolate Rice Cakes //

Just as dark chocolate and wine go perfectly together, so do dark chocolate and wine colored packaging. Not only does the wine color reflect the rich, robust flavor of what's inside its package, it also supports the image of dark chocolate as one of the more luxurious and refined ways to satisfy a sweet tooth.

Rosy Romantic Posters

16. Winery Concert Poster //

Wine and music converge in this poster for a winery concert series. More than just a logical color choice, the use of a deep wine red with natural olive green and a wheat colored background gives the series a classic, romantic feel and evokes the kind of relaxed luxury only found with a wine glass in hand and open country before you.

17. Ruby Velle Concert Poster //

The use of a rich berry red in this concert poster doesn't just make sense because the band name contains the word Ruby. Paired with an aged black and white photo, the use of dark wine red as an accent helps convey the band's rich, soulful sound and classic roots in rhythm and blues of the early 50s and 60s.

18. The Boys Movie Poster //

In this poster for The Boys, the use of deep wine red reflects the classic songs, Hollywood history, and silver screen royalty the documentary is about. The shift from bright berry red to near black also conveys both the rosy romanticism and harsh reality likely found in such a true story.

19. German Museum of Film and Television Poster //

In this poster for a film series featuring the early years of talking cinema, the use of a deep wine color at the convergence of brighter berry and tomato reds effectively reflects a filmmaking era that was a time of both powerful change and classic romantic cinema and is now a rich part of filmmaking history.

What feelings do these examples of Cabernet Sauvignon inspire you? What other awesome examples of Cabernet Sauvignon have you encountered in advertising, marketing, branding or everyday life? Join the conversation below or stop by Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest to discover more inspiring examples and let us know where you've seen Cabernet Sauvignon used and how it makes you feel.