Wednesday’s ad is for Schlitz, from probably the late 1940s. It’s part of the long-running “I was curious” series from Schlitz that typically showed three panel showing the progression from curiosity to tasting to acceptance, a sort of mini Kubler-Ross of the three states of beer tasting. In this ad, it shows two couples by a lake. Why is it that most ads depicting couples during this time period show them separated and not interacting, boys with the boys and girls with the girls?
Tuesday’s Christmas ad is for Rheingold Beer, from 1943. In the ad, a woman has apparently just hung the wreath, and to hammer home the point she’s still holding it in her hand. It’s impressive how she managed to hang it in the exact spot so the tagline — The Season’s Greeting — is centered inside the wreath.
I tend to view the concept of ice plus beer with horror, but apparently in Japan it’s “so cool.” That’s at least the opinion of Kirin, whose uncharacteristically low-tech commercial make the case for its coolness. The verdict? The ad: pretty cool. Ice plus beer: not cool.
Monday’s Christmas Eve ad is for Arrow Beer, from 1946. It’s a simple ad, showing a glass of Arrow Beer along with a bottle in front of a wreath of holly and a candle. The ad copy couldn’t be simpler. “Seasons Cheer … from Arrow Beer.”
Friday’s ad is a newer one for Carlsberg, with the tree he’s “still putting the finishing touches on” made out of Carlsberg crowns with a fill glass as tree trunk.
Thursday’s ad is for Budweiser, from 1908, when it appears they launched a number of historically themed ads. This one features our 7th president, Andrew Jackson, and equates him with “Liquid Life,” “The National Drink of America.”
Wednesday’s ad is for Valley Forge Beer, because it was on this day, December 19, 1777 that George Washington set up camp for the winter in the small Pennsylvania town of Valley Forge. I went to the historical site a few times as a kid, including once as a Boy Scout where we followed some orienteering with maps and compass to earn some sort of ribbon, or something. I don’t usually do breweriana other than actual print advertising, but it made sense to break out the tray because of the date.
Valley Forge Beer was brewed by the Adam Scheidt Brewery in Norristown, Pennsylvania, which is just a few miles from Valley Forge. Here’s a short history of the brewery, from a breweriana collectors website.
The Adam Scheidt Brewing Company was founded in the late 1870s and was incorporated in 1884. After Prohibition, the brewery thrived, brewing Valley Forge Beer, Ram’s Head Ale, and Prior Beer. The brewery’s name was changed to the Valley Forge Brewing Company in 1963 and, five years later, it was sold to Philadelphia’s largest brewer at the time, C. Schmidt & Sons. It continued to operate as a branch of Schmidt’s until 1975, when the facility was closed. Schmidt’s continued to brew the Valley Forge and Ram’s Head brands until the early 1980s, when Schmidt’s itself finally ceased operations.
And here’s another one of the same tray, this one showing better color.
Frankly, I remember seeing these trays around when I was a kid, and cans of the beer, but it was never something I ever drank. I don’t ever remember even seeing it for sale where we lived. Below is a less common tray showing the same event, but by a different artist, obviously.
Tuesday’s ad is for the G. Heilman brand Schmidt, not to be confused with Schmidt’s. I’m not sure when the ad is from, but I imagine the most telling clue is the pull-top crown and the big mouth bottle. Is anybody still using those bottles? The last one I remember was Mickey’s Big Mouth. I haven’t seen them in California for a few years now. Also, with that tagline, For the Thrill of Victory or the Agony of Defeat, I’m not sure how invoking ABC’s Wide World of Sports ties into the beer, although it may offer a clue as the ad’s age. The show debuted in 1961, so it’s likely the ad was sometime after that, though it seems reasonable that it would have been long enough after it began that their catchphrase was already popular. But perhaps it’s the text at the bottom, “the same great beer every time,” that the tagline is referring to; insofar as you don’t want some beers to be winners and others to be losers, it’s consistency that’s king. Anybody have a better theory?
Monday’s ad is from the long-running “Where there’s Life …” series for Budweiser, this one from the mid-1950s, I believe. They did few ads of this type, with scene shown through a full glass of beer, and in this one it’s square dancing. Yee haw.
Saturday’s ad is the last (that I know of) in the Budweiser historical series from 1908. The black and white ad is text-heavy and includes a history lesson on James Monroe, our fifth president and the architect of the Monroe Doctrine. After the requisite historical bit, it launches into this priceless series of claims:
WHEN old Mother Earth grows better malting barley than northern soil produces —
WHEN the fertile valleys and verdant mountain slopes of Old Bohemia grow better hops —
WHEN natures produces better and purer waters —
WHEN brew-science has been developed to a higher art —
THEN, and not till then, will it be possible to produce a better beer than Budweiser.
Good luck with that.
