Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Beer In Ads #409: Acme Quality Wins Again

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Thursday’s ad is from 1941, and is for Acme Beer, showing a decidedly western theme, showing a cowgirl and her horse. The slogan seems a bit confused, as I’m not sure what “Quality Wins Again!” has to do with the scene at hand. But I love the text under “Acme Beer.” It reads “* Dietetically NON-FATTENING” and the asterisk qualifies that statement with “* relatively so, compared with other foods.” The Main Institute would have a field day with that one, as their most recent campaign is against any perceived health claims made by alcohol companies, and the Acme Beer almost sounds like it might be good for you. Gasp!

Acme-quality-1941

Beer In Ads #408: Live Life … Every Golden Minute Of It

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Wednesday’s ad is from 1940, and is for a New Zealand beer, Waitemata, that today no is owned by DB Breweries but is no longer made by the giant brewing conglomerate. Great artwork, though the Sparkling Pale Ale the man is pouring doesn’t look especially pale. But you have to love that tagline. “Live life …. every golden minute of it …. Enjoy WAITEMATA …. every golden drop of it.”

Waitemata

Beer In Ads #407: Pabst Everywhere

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Tuesday’s ad is an old one — from 1893 — for Pabst, showing an odd scene “In Darkest Africa.” The artwork is apparently depicting Emin Pascha inviting Stanley to lunch. Pascha was a doctor, explorer and governor of one of the Egyptian provinces after 1876. Stanley is the famous British explorer Henry M. Stanley who went looking for Dr. Livingstone, I presume. But the ad is showing another of Stanley’s expedition, from 1886-1889, known as the Emin Pasha Relief Expedition in which he led a party to rescue Pascha. Presumably that’s what the ad for Pabst’s Export Beer is playing against, as it was big news in its day, though the Africans are depicted in a less-than-flattering light.

Pabst-africa-1893

Flying Beer

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Here’s an interesting little tidbit from David Bonneywell, a professional special effects artist from Great Britain, who’s worked on such shows and films as Dr. Who and Clash of the Titans. For a television show he was working on several years ago, he had to create a special effect of beer flying out of a glass in slow motion, with the results pictured below.

Flying_beer_by_Kaduflyer

Here’s how Bonneywell describes the process he used:

For an episode of the TV series ‘Keen Eddie‘ they wanted a Matrix style ‘bullet time’ shot of a bar room brawl. However, these type of shots normally require dozens of cameras and lots of time and money, things sorely lacking in TV productions! The answer?? Suspend tables and chairs on wires, get your actors to stand VERY still in mid punch etc and get some FX guy to make plastic, freeze frame beer!!

Using photos of real beer in flight I cut a shape from clear sheet plastic and shaped it by heating and bending it. I stuck this into a real beer glass and then built up the ‘beer’ with epoxy glue coloured with brown inks. Considering it’s not the sort of thing I normally do (no boobies, monsters or blood!!…lol) I thought it turned out quite well.

For the same series I also made some over head rubber masks of Duran Duran (the group not the film character) used in an episode as disguises by some bank robbers!!

The series was an American show but for some reason was made in the UK…I’ve never actually seen it. If anyone here has I’d be interested to know how well this worked in the show!!

Kinda nailed it, I’d say.

Beer In Art #134: Jean Beraud’s Open-Air Ball

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This week’s work of art is by a Russian artist, Jean Béraud, though he lived much of his life in France during the Belle Epoque. Open-air Ball, or Le Bal public, was painted in 1880.

Beraud-open-air-ball

Depicting a typical scene of Paris night life in the 1880s, speculation has the setting being the Closerie des Lilas cafe. People are dancing on the right-hand portion of the painting, but resting with glasses of beer on the left, as shown in a detail of the artwork below.

Beraud-open-air-ball-detail

You can read Béraud’s biography at Wikipedia, and also at the Tate. You can see more of Béraud’s paintings at All Posters and Hoocher.

Beer In Ads #405: Warm Hospitality Calls For Well-Chilled Beer

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Friday’s ad is for Ballantine and is somewhat patriotic, at least insofar as the beer is chilling in colonial looking drum with Americana all over it. Also, the wallpaper and the candle holder are also quite patriotic. So with the 4th of July weekend beckoning, it’s hard to agree with that slogan. “Warm Hospitality calls for Well-Chilled Beer.”

Ballantine-1946-drum

Beer In Ads #404: Biere Karcher

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Thursday’s ad is for the Brasserie Karcher, from Paris, France. I’m not sure exactly when the ad is from, but I would have to guess late 19th century. The fetching woman holding out two mugs of beers appears to be standing confidently on a keg of Biere Karcher, despite wearing high heels.

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