Friday’s ad is a turn of the century ad for a Pennsylvania brewery, New Lebanon Brewing. The brewery was first founded in 1874 and went through a variety of name changes. It was Lebanon Brewing from 1884 to 1893 and Lebanon Valley Brewing from 1934 until it closed in 1959. But it was New Lebanon Brewing from 1893 to 1920, so this ad has to have been from those years.
Thursday’s ad is another early ad for Ballantine, done by a cartoon artist depicting three well-heeled gentlemen sitting and talking while they enjoy their Ballantine Ale. It uses the tagline “Moving in the Best Circles …”
Wednesday’s ad is an early ad for Ballantine, one of the first to use their iconic three-rings of “body,” “purity” and “flavor.” Unfortunately, it also features an ugly, frightening clown — but then I hate clowns.
Tuesday’s ad is for a German brewery — I think — Pilse Etzer, so it says, is the best bottled beer. The woman in the red circle, however, looks like Dutch.
Monday’s ad is for a Spanish brewery, Moritz in Barcelona, which was founded in 1856 and closed in 1978. Remaining family members started up the brand again a few years ago, contracting the brewing. This ad is for Epidor, a strong lager they debuted July 23, 1923. Given the strange face of the man in the ad, I’m not exactly sure who their target audience was or why they thought that would help sell beer. Does it make you want to drink their beer?
California freelance journalist Andrew Rosenblum has an interesting short history of malt liquor marketing on Accidental Blogger entitled What Was Malt Liquor?
Check out this unintentionally hilarious video made for the Anheuser-Busch sales force and distributors in 1973, created to showcase how they were going to “open up” the market for malt liquor with Budweiser Malt Liquor.
Our 36th Guinness poster by John Gilroy features a farmer lifting a heavy tractor (it actually looks a little like a tank) to let some baby ducks, and their momma duck, pass by. The tagline is “Guinness for strength” since it’s the bottle of Guinness in his back pocket that gave him the duck-protecting strength.
Friday’s ad is for another French brewery, Biere St. Nicolas De Port, which minus biere is a commune in the Lorraine region of northeast France. The ad is by Marcellin Auzolle, who’s done a number of French beer ads. It’s also oddly cocky.
Thursday’s ad is for the French brewery, Brasserie du Fort Carré from Saint-Dizier, Haute-Marne. The ad is the third one we’ve featured by Leonetto Cappiello, the Italian illustrator considered to be the father of modern advertising.
