Saturday’s ad is entitled Getting The Boat Ready, and the illustration was done in 1950 by Douglass Crockwell. It’s #42 in a series entitled “Home Life in America,” also known as the Beer Belongs series of ads that the United States Brewers Foundation ran from 1945 to 1956. In this ad, it seems like more of a canoe than a “boat” that he’s getting ready. But I love how everybody’s sitting around drinking beer and watching that one guy do all the work. I guess it’s his boat.
Today in 1985, US Patent 4516698 A was issued, an invention of Vincent J. Cerrato, for his “Keg-Pump Construction.” Here’s the Abstract:
A keg-tapping device wherein a probe is selectively actuable within a tap body, between axial positions of communication with and cut-off from the inner volume of the keg, to which it may be attached. The probe extends upwardly beyond the tap body and carries an axially reciprocal air pump at its upper end, while a beverage-dispensing port is open laterally, at a location beneath the pump and above the tap body. A pressure-relief valve with external actuating access is carried by the probe, and the arrangement is such that the probe and all components mounted thereto are bodily rotatable, over a full 360 degrees of lateral-discharge direction for beverage delivered at the discharge port. Conveniently, a flexible hose connects the discharge port to a selectively operable dispensing valve, and the dispensing valve is therefore flexibly adaptable, without keg movement, to serve glasses within a maximum radius (hose length), whatever the azimuth direction at which a glass is to be served.
Friday’s ad is entitled Rehearsing the Community Play, and the illustration was done in 1950 by Douglass Crockwell. It’s #41 in a series entitled “Home Life in America,” also known as the Beer Belongs series of ads that the United States Brewers Foundation ran from 1945 to 1956. In this ad, a large group is doing a read-through of a community play that, presumably, will eventually be performed on a stage somewhere. But to make it through these early stages of the play’s development, many beers are necessary.
Today in 1884, US Patent 298686 A was issued, an invention of Peter Gardner, for his “Faucet For Drawing Beer and Other Liquors.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
This invention relates to certain improvements in faucets for beer-kegs and other vessels containing liquids under pressure; and it has for its objects to provide a faucet which may be applied to any vessel or keg, and by means of which the same maybe tapped conveniently without waste of material, as more fully hereinafter specified. These objects I attain by the means illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 represents a view partly in longitudinal section and partly in side elevation of my improved faucet, showing the same attached to a beer-keg; and Fig. 2 represents a perspective view of a metallic screw-threaded annulus to be employed in connection with the faucet, in order to adapt it to bushing of different sizes, the interior diameter varying according to the size of faucet used.
Thursday’s ad is entitled Indoor Golf Clinic, and the illustration was done in 1950 by Douglass Crockwell. It’s #40 in a series entitled “Home Life in America,” also known as the Beer Belongs series of ads that the United States Brewers Foundation ran from 1945 to 1956. In this ad, two couples are having a few beers, while the men practice their putting as the women try their best not to talk over them. But I think what may be hardest for them is trying not to laugh.
Tomorrow night in Novato, at the Unity In Marin church, located at 600 Palm Drive, a benefit for Autism — a cause near and dear to me — will be held. Corks & Suds will take place from 7:00-10:00 PM, and will feature music by “The Decades” and special guest piano performance by young man with autism.
Lagunitas, Anchor Brewing, Iron Springs and many more special guest beers from San Francisco Brewing Collective, Food from Alta Cuisine and Sonoma wines plus much more will be there! An evening of fun for a great cause.
Tickets are available at both Eventbrite and Global Offerings and there’s more information at the event’s Facebook page. I’m not sure how long this coupon will work, but put in Coupon code “CAS-SPECIAL” and get your ticket for $45 instead of $70!
My friend Paul Marshall sent me this delightful little story about the state of the Prohibition Party in 2016. And yes, that Prohibition Party. Believe it or not it’s the oldest independent third-party still active, and they field a presidential candidate every four years. The party was founded in 1869, and its single defining platform was that they were, and still are, “opposed [to] the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages.” I knew they were still around, hoping to convince people that Prohibition was really a good idea, and we should try it again, despite all evidence to the contrary. But what I didn’t know was just how small they’ve become.
In their heyday, before the 18th Amendment passed, they were active in American politics and contributed to the discussion, and even after Prohibition was enacted, continued to agitate for even stricter controls until they faded into obscurity. How obscure? In the 2012 national election for President of the United States, the Prohibition Party candidate, Jack Fellure of West Virginia, received 518 votes. But that’s not even the low point. One of their 2004 candidates, Earl Dodge of Colorado (there were two that election due to a split in the party), got 140 votes. At their peak, in 1892, John Bidwell of California received 270,770, which represented only a little bit less than half a percent of the roughly 63 million people then in the U.S. Seven times they cracked the 200,000 vote line, though not since 1916. The last time they hit over 100,000 votes was 1948, and 1976 was the last time they garnered more than 10,000. In the last three elections, less then 1,000 people voted for the party candidate.
According to the Guardian article by Adam Gabbatt, A sobering alternative? Prohibition party back on the ticket this election, revealed that this year’s candidate is Jim Hedges of Pennsylvania, and his running mate is Bill Bayes of Mississippi. Hedges is actually the only known member of the Prohibition Party to have held any elected office — local, state or national — in the 21st Century, when he was the Tax Assessor for Thompson Township, Pennsylvania between 2002 and 2007.
Gabbatt went to Pennsylvania to interview the candidates, and it’s a fascinating read. It’s interesting to hear him talk so matter-of-factly about such an anachronistic idea that most people have moved past, with the obvious exception of the anti-alcohol groups that still exist. But even they seemed to have abandoned trying to get Prohibition going again (even though they’d certainly be in favor of it). Instead, they’ve been slinging mud and trying to disrupt the manufacture and sale (though especially access and advertising) of alcohol pretty much since before the ink was dry on the 21st Amendment.
Not surprisingly, the makeup of the membership skews to an older demographic, and according to Hedges “the current members are over 50, many in their 70s and 80s, and many are ultra-conservative.” But one of the most surprising reveals in the article is just how small the Prohibition Party of today really is. Hedges said that there are “currently about three dozen fee-paying members, who each contribute $10 a year.” So that’s $360 the party receives in dues for the year, plus there was a trust set up in the 1930s that provides additional funds. In most elections recently, that’s allowed them to be on the ballot in just one state, though this year Hedges is hoping to make it onto the ballot in six states, with an ultimate goal of getting 1,000 votes in each. But he’s realistic about his changes of becoming president, which he states are simply. “Zero. None whatsoever.” Still, despite the great divide between his party’s platform, and my own politics, I still think he’d make a better president than Donald Trump. If only there were a button available.
Jim Hedges and Adam Gabbatt in McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania, taken by Guardian author Adam Gabbatt.
Today in 1942, US Patent 2283100 A was issued, an invention of Harry C. Shores, assigned to Anheuser-Busch, for his “Pressure Regulating Attachment For Liquid Containers.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The present invention relates to new and useful improvements in means for creating pressure within liquid containers, such as beer kegs, and the like, and has for its primary object to provide an inflatable bag adapted for attaching to a wall of the keg and projecting therein so that pressure of the liquid in the container may be increased by expanding the bag.
Wednesday’s ad is entitled Impromptu Concert, and the illustration was done in 1950 by John Gannam. It’s #39 in a series entitled “Home Life in America,” also known as the Beer Belongs series of ads that the United States Brewers Foundation ran from 1945 to 1956. In this ad, after many beers, a group of young people decided they could make their own music. The guy in the bow tie grabbed a guitar, because nothing screams rock and roll like a bow tie. And of course, to rock out you definitely need an accordion. This one’s going to be epic. But at least they’re reading music and playing their own instruments. I hate to say it, but that’s becoming a lost art. Lastly, check out the inset picture below the art, where it reads “Springtime is Bock Beer Time … Try It!” That mug is pretty awesome.
You know the brewing industry must be doing something right if one of America’s largest producers of wine has decided to jump in with a new brewery. Brewbound has the scoop, with Jackson Family Wines Proprietor Launching Sonoma County Craft Brewery.
It’s certainly not the first time. Does anybody else remember Sonoma Mountain Brewing? And more recently, Carneros Brewing built a brewery on the grounds of their Ceja Vineyards. And don’t forget that Korbel Winery once launched their own small brewery, hiring a young brewer to make the beer. After a short time, they decided to get out of the beer business, and brewer Vinnie Cilurzo obtained the name and moved Russian River Brewing to downtown Santa Rosa, and with his wife Natalie Cilurzo, built it into a destination brewery that’s undoubtedly helped put Sonoma County on the map for beer, as well as wine. So some have worked great, others not so much.
This one at least seems off to a big start. It’s not officially a project of the Jackson Family Wines, but Christopher Jackson, who is the son of winery founder Jess Jackson. Of course, most start-ups don’t have the resources to start by “constructing a 25,000-barrel craft brewery” with “an initial brewing capacity of 8,000 barrels.” Most start-ups don’t have $8 million as their initial capital, even though Jackson states that “[i]t is a passion play” and I “am the sole proprietor and it is my project going forth, but we are employing a lot of similar philosophies from my wine background.”
The new brewery will apparently be called Seismic Brewing Company, which name Jackson bought from San Diego’s Rough Draft Brewing. The new brewery will be located at 2870 Duke Court, Santa Rosa and plans to open in late summer.
It sure seems like Sonoma County is indeed becoming a “craft beer Mecca,” as Jackson called Santa Rosa. I think that’s truer of the whole county, but certainly between Santa Rosa and Petaluma the county’s doing pretty well. Sonoma County currently has 31 licensed breweries, at least according to the latest number from the CCBA, which means we’re nowhere near the 100+ that are now open in San Diego County. Still, I think Sonoma probably has more than most counties.
