In my recent screed over Tennessee’s decision to make carding for off-premise beer purchases mandatory, I mentioned that I still have my Pennsylvania drinking card, or PLCB card. A couple of people called me on it and so while I knew I had it somewhere, laying my hands on it I knew might prove more difficult. Surprisingly enough, I found it in the very first place I looked. So for Shaun and Jim, and anyone else curious to see what these things used to look like, here is my 27-year old PLCB card.

Front: Well, the first thing you’re bound to notice is that unflattering photo of me when I was 20, and that helmet hair. Sheesh, that’s embarrassing. Notice that it’s called an “IDENTIFICATION CARD” and follows that up with the peculiar “(For Proof of Age Only)” which is, as I said, the only thing the card was good for, proving you were old enough to drink in Pennsylvania.

Back: The legalese about the card representing that I had presented “documentary evidence” — my birth certificate — when I submitted the form at the State Store.