Fun With Alcohol

A promotional fold-out from the Wine Advisory Board, San Francisco, CA. The flip side had recipes and a chart for pairing up wines and foods.

I love the Fifties/Sixties tradition of drawing a whole fish as though its tail was folded over like a paper toy. Also, chicks dig sweets so it's okay to give them cheap wine at your card party. Don't forget.

Every time you call this stuff "Champagne," another French person is ticked off for two weeks.

So today's lesson (apart from the usual "Ooh, Shiny!") is: Expensive booze over cheap fruit, for the win! I need to find and post an ad that says just the opposite. Otherwise, the universe won't stay in balance. From the August issue of House Beautiful.

I thought better of posting this in late Winter/early Spring. Hopefully it's okay now. From the August 1948 issue of House Beautiful.

Audrey's just crooning Tom, Dick, and Harry a nice lullaby as she pours out the nightcaps, I'm sure.

After two highballs, it gets really tough to say "Monogrammed Phonograph" over and over again, but by that time nobody really minds. From the September 1st issue of Collier's magazine.

"Today in countless homes of the nation, American citizens are welcoming the rebirth of those delightful customs of other days..." ...Drinking in public!! Wooo!! Front cover and first page of a 20-page promo published by G.F. Heublein & Bro., Hartford, Conn.

"...the art of dining, of entertaining and of old time hospitality-- preceded and accompanied by genuine, matured liquors..." And buttered toast. Lots and lots of buttered toast.

"...in the form of inspiring cocktails, refreshing highballs and the varied drinks that aid so materially in the enjoyment of any occasion... I had no idea before picking up this booklet that so many different kinds of cocktail shaker existed in the world. It's kind of inspiring.

"That delightful custom of serving appetizers with the cocktail-- canapes of spicy allurement and hors d'oeuvres in tempting ensembles of the world's finest delicacies-- will add piquancy to the pre-dinner cocktail and a delicious attribute to the buffet supper..." The toast-your-own-canapes-at-the-table arrangement is adorable.

"Believing that the host and hostess will discover a real need for appetizer recipes we present this little booklet with the hope that it will prove of genuine assistance in the entertainment of your guests-- and at the same time bring to your attention two of America's finest products--" GIN! And gin with some other stuff mixed into the bottle with it!

"The experienced host or hostess keeps the pantry well stocked with a variety of tinned and glassed foods which, at a moment's notice, may be fashioned into simple, yet delicious, appetizers for the cocktail hour... Rare and more costly products of foreign countries may be purchased and added to your larder for use when a special occasion justifies a more elaborate and unusual diversity..." I have a nagging suspicion that nearly everyone during this time was dreaming about caviar and Pate' de Foie Gras rather than serving it.

"With the following articles in the pantry, the hostess will be able to prepare a most appetizing and attractive assortment of canapes for the impromptu occasion. "Anchovies, anchovy paste, antipasto in glass or tin, caviar red or black, chicken in glass or tin, crab meat, lobster meat, devilled tongue, devilled ham, frankfurters, small sausages, Pate de Foie Gras, sardines, salmon, smoked salmon, stuffed olives, ripe olives, olives stuffed with anchovies..."

"...pearl onions, olive oil, vinegar, dill pickles, sweet pickles, pimentoes, relish, mushrooms, shrimps, tuna fish, capers, marmalade, guava jelly, salted almonds, cheese sticks, potato chips, variety of crackers, cream cheese, Roquefort paste, salad dressing, mayonnaise, mustard, A1 Sauce." The writers were nothing if not modest about their own humble condiment. Which is weird given that it could have gone right up front alphabetically.

My Photoshop skills are pretty limited, but I went ahead and ran these bigger than they were in the booklet. Just because I love 'em so much. (Clicking on the image itself and then the largest "View All Sizes" option will give you a little more detail.)

I don't feel very patriotic reading this. I only have one type of vermouth in the cupboard. Both sides of a leaflet published by Pleasant Valley Wine Co., Rheims, N.Y.

Tomorrow, let's all try pouring booze on our breakfast fruit! Whadaya' say? From the March issue of Sports Afield.