Friday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1952. It uses their popular “If you love beer … you’ll love Schlitz” mantra that graced so many of their ads. But this one seems slightly odder. For example, I don’t quite get the animated discussion that appears to be centering on that red hunting cap. But perhaps more interesting is the bottom left corner, where they’re attempting to teach consumers that brown bottles protect beer better. And I thought that was a new tactic.
For our Friday Frivolity here’s a fun little cartoon created by H. Caldwell Tanner. Entitled Beer is like Ice Cream for Adults, and subtitled “and here’s why” explains why those of us who are of an advanced age can enjoy both beer and ice cream. Hooray for us!
Today’s infographic is an odd one. Entitled Beer Efficiency Score, they mean “How potent is my brew per calorie consumed?” It’s a rather dubious measure of a beer, but interesting that someone would go to the trouble to figure it out.
Click here to see the chart full size.
This week was a fun one, in part because Tom Acitelli was in town on his book tour, promoting his new paperback The Audacity of Hops: The History of America’s Craft Beer Revolution. He started Tuesday evening at the Anchor Brewery, where he spoke briefly, signed some books and all of us enjoyed a few beers.
Tom Acitelli reading from the “Audacity of Hops” at Anchor Brewing.
Dave Suurballe, Judy Ashworth, Julie Nickels and Bruce Paton at Tom’s book event.
The next day, Tom drove up to my house, and from there we had lunch at Russian River, and then we whisked over to the production brewery for a quick tour before doing a Bottom of the Bottle podcast at Beercraft in Rohnert Park. Then that evening Tom did an event at Lagunitas hosted by my local book store chain, Copperfield’s Books, before heading back home to Boston the following morning.
Tom with Vinnie Cilurzo at Russian River’s production brewery.
On the Bottom of the Bottle podcast (photo by Greg Coll).
Joe Tucker, stealing a drink, Jeremy Marshall, me Tom and Ken Weaver at Lagunitas.
It was great fun hanging out for a longer period of time with Tom, as we’d only met briefly a couple of times before. His new book, The Audacity of Hops: The History of America’s Craft Beer Revolution, seems very, very good. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of the parts I’ve managed to find the time to read so far, and many people whose opinions I respect are all saying the same thing: that Tom has managed to write a comprehensive, thorough and enjoyable history of the craft beer since 1965. I heartily recommend his book to anyone new to the beer world, or anyone who wants to get some context to how we got to where we are today. It’s been a great journey.
Thursday’s ad is for Pabst Blue Ribbon, from 1963. The ad apparently is meant to look older, from the century before the Sixties. But the notion that “old-time flavor likes you best” strikes me as hilariously odd.
Wednesday’s ad is for Miller High Life, from 1955. Showing scenes of two groups playing golf, 100 years apart, the 100 Years In America they’re referring to vaguely tied to being “still the National Champion of Quality.” They also make the connection that golf courses are unchanged, and the beer is unchanged, over that same century. And that must be one really tiny pilsner glass, as it’s been filled to the top, but the bottle is still half full.
This is great news, Alabama may soon become the last state to legalize homebrewing since Prohibition, thanks in large part to the grassroots efforts of Right to Brew. According to the American Homebrewers Association:
The Alabama legislature has passed a bill that, once signed by Governor Robert J. Bentley, will effectively legalize homebrewing throughout the state. Alabama will be the last state in the nation to legalize homebrewing.
“Homebrewing has been an integral part of the history of America, so it’s thrilling to know that soon all 50 states will support this growing hobby and long-standing tradition,” said Gary Glass, director, American Homebrewers Association. “We appreciate the backing of all of the homebrewers, the dedicated grassroots efforts of Right to Brew and the legislators who have worked so diligently to make homebrewing a reality in Alabama. We are especially grateful to Representative Mac McCutcheon who introduced this bill and has fought long and hard for its passage, along with Senator Bill Holtzclaw.”
Alabama is the last state holding out against legalizing homebrewing. In March 2013, Mississippi became the 49th state to pass homebrew legislation. The AHA has been working with Right to Brew for five years in order to get the Alabama bill passed.
Homebrewing became federally legal in 1979, though the 21st Amendment predominantly leaves regulation of alcohol to the states. Therefore, even though homebrewing is federally legal, it is up to individual states to legalize homebrewing in state codes. Once the Alabama bill is signed by Gov. Bentley, it will be the first time since pre-Prohibition days that homebrewers in all the states can legally brew at home.
The next step is for the Alabama governor to sign the bill into law. If you’re in Alabama, please urge the governer to do so. You can find out how to help at the Craft Beer website.
Tuesday’s ad is for Budweiser, from 1949. It’s from their “There’s nothing like it …” series that ran for quite a long while. The ad copy, which begins “Your favorite partner, a delightful buffet …” seems quite odd, and possibly revealing. It continues. “Add foaming, babbling Budweiser and you have the finest sip-and-nibble combination ever known.” I don’t think they’re talking about the beer and food. I think they mean the predatory males hunting that poor woman just trying to have a bite to eat. Presumably they’re at a cocktail party at someone’s home. The person who gets a plate of food and retreats to the stairs is trying to be alone. But then these two circle her, blocking her escape route either up or down the stairs, each with a fresh beer in hand. The strained smile on her face and her posture — clasping her hands protectively around her skirt, unable to eat — seems to say ‘how long do I have to be polite before I can get away from these yahoos?’
