It Runs In the Family--Vintage Bar Collection

Apologies for my sporadic posting, but honestly my computer's so slow it takes forever between all the lockups and script errors, to do more than a few lines and a couple of pics (this post has actually been in progress for 3 days)...plus, I don't have a scanner and have to wait until I'm at my mom's if I want to scan anything and I usually forget due to the cuteness of Pip and my parents' puppy, Tavish, playing together when we're there!  Puppy cuteness leads to memory loss.  True story. 

 

Well, we're finally having a spot of sunshine, so I wanted to take some pics while I could of my vintage bar collection.  Most of this is inherited from my paternal grandfather's home bar (the 'Good Time Charlie, to the left was his too!).  It was a fab knotty pine masterpiece of mid-century awesomeness!  The only pic I have of it is of the wall behind the bar, so you can't really tell much about the room itself....

...but it was gorg!  It was in the old part of the upstairs of my grandparents' house, which was really an attic.  The entire room, including the sloping ceiling was covered in knotty.  It even had ultra modern looking recessed spot lights in the ceiling!  Not too shabby for 1960, which is when everything was installed!  My dad saved the bar itself before the house was demolished by the new owner and is planning on installing it in his workshop/mancave this summer.  When he does, I'll be sure to get pics for you!  He also has that decanter in the picture...unopened...sitting on the kitchen counter in my parents' house! 

On to the pride and joy of the 'Brady Ponderosa', my bar collection:

Half of my collection is stored in Dan-o, the stereo.  You see those doors in the middle?  They look like they'd slide open to reveal record storage, right?  Yeah, that's what I thought when I bought it and didn't even bother to look inside....until my dad was helping me load it the next day and I heard a "clink, clink" as we hefted it up onto the trailer.

When I opened it, I found out it was actually a bar storage area, complete with glass holders and the 8 original glasses that you can kind of see here:

My other bar/liquor cabinet is in the right half of my Sculptra buffet/hutch in my dining room:

One of my favourite bottles is the unopened Dark Eyes Grenadine bottle:

  

I've not been able to find any information on this brand, but I would guess it's from the '50s-early '60s.  Anyone ever heard of it?

This is the best stuff EVER!:

 

It's like drinking a chocolate covered cherry! 

There was a hang tag on this, but it was in ROUGH shape.  But judging by the visuals that were on it, I'd estimate this bottle to be from the late '60s-early '70s.  Here's a great ad from the early '70s:

 

 

And one from the late '60s:

 

They still make this stuff and I highly recommend it!!

Cointreau, most likely from the 1960's...
 
A contemporary ad:

I'm diggin' the Cointreau rack!  And any green drink is A-Ok in my book!

There's a lot of Hiram Walker in this collection!
Here, we have Chocolate Mint fron the '70s and 1960's Green Creme de Menthe:

  









I have two of the larger bottles of creme de cacao, probably from the '60s.  The smaller one is much older.




 

Coffee brandy from the '70s....



Schnapps!!  Probably from the '70s.  The peach brandy, I'd date to the '60s....


More Schnapps!  This time, Peppermint.  Frankly, YUCK!!



Kirsch.  My grandmother used to put this stuff in sooooo many deserts!  They'd float!!
 

 Here's another fun one!  Deuce Juice!  I can't seem to find any info on this one either, but judging by the packaging, I'd say early '70s.  Isn't it fun!  I have a slight feeling the 'pure grape wine' wasn't much of a vintage?  N'est pas?


This next one is my favourite bottle.  Not because it looks cool, although it does, it's because it belonged to my great-grandfather, George:

That's him on the right a few months before his death.  On the left is my grandfather.
Now, my great-grandmother didn't approve of drinking.  She was a hard core teetotaler.  But Papaw George drank.  He was, however, smart enough not to let her see him drinking.  Everyone in the family knew he had a stash somewhere, but no one ever found it...including my great-grandmother.
Years after he died, while cleaning out an old building next to my grandparent's store, dad found a cured ham hanging in a storage closet.  It was hollow.  In the void was hidden this gem:

Dad instantly knew that he'd found his grandfather's long lost liquor stash.  Consequently, this is the most prized piece in my collection.  Of course it goes without saying that, once my dad gets his bar set up, this beauty will be returned to a place of honour in his collection!

There are a couple of decanters I like that I'll eventually add to the collection, I just haven't knicked them from storage at my mom and dad's house yet!

The collection isn't limited to mid century liquor.  Here's some other lovely little things my grandfather had in his bar....

I adore this Seagram's basket-y thing.  Perfect for spoons and stirrers.

These spoons have a lovely art deco design on the handles and the colours match my kitchen and dining decor so well!

 

These are fun!

The clear one on the left with the dog on top is marked Wolfschmidt's Vodka.

 

The nautical themed spoon in the middle is one of a set.  They have little gold foil stickers on them and I'm sure they once held the name of something or somewhere, but it's long worn off.

 The little stirrer on the end is from TWA Airlines.

 

I'm quite smitten with this set with their red Bakelite handles....

This pocket bar guide is from 1942 and will turn you into a mini Tom Cruise...

Speaking of Mixology guides.....

Here's a Bicentennial one:

These two are hilarious, mainly because they focus on 'What's your sign?'.  The graphics and fonts in these are fantastic.  I'll scan these soon and share further the groovalicious details.

This is my favourite.  So much so, that I'm seriously considering framing it....double sided of course, because both sides are so much fun!  Look at that seal!!

I love that it even gives you a  visual of the proper glass to use for each cocktail!

If you're gonna make these cocktails, you'll need shakers....

There's something endearing about this slightly banged up old aluminum model:

This one's slightly newer...I'm thinking '60s (I just now saw that I fingerprinted it before taking the pic!  Oooops!):

And, if you need to make drinks for an army....

This thing is truly HUGE!

And if you forget how to make some popular drinks, NEVER FEAR!!!  It conveniently has a little rotary on top that gives you a cheat sheet!!

 

 If you want it stirred not shaken, Mr. Bond, you'll need these:

Sprite swizzles!!

Even better, these 'Swirl Sippers'.

A swizzle and a straw in one!  What WILL they think of next?

And if you'd like to have a Hef style drink, just spear your olive with one of these.  You'll feel like you're drinking in the Playboy Club circa 1966:

I ADORE this bottle opener!  One of my favourite pieces, actually.

These are next pieces are SUPER old.  Much older than mid century.  They were found in the top of my family's store that had been sealed up since 1953...you can read the story here.

I couldn't get a non blurry photo of these and to be fair, the print on them is a bit faded anyway.

This one is local and says:

"Compliments of

M.R. Miller & Co.

Drink

Bristol Club

Clinchfield, 

and Miller's Oldest

Bristol, VA"

 

This one's marked "Glasco Medicine Glass".  It has a little measurement scale that measures "Tea" and "Wine Glass".

This set was inside a golf ball.  Yep, inside a golf ball!

 

 I found a picture of what the thing looked like on Etsy:

Obviously one of my shot glasses was missing, there was also a crack in the top of the golf ball.  So I just opted to keep the glasses and decanter.

 We've now come to what I affectionately call 'Drink Condoms'.

Before 'coozies', there were these bad boys:

 The fact that the box mentions "sensation" makes the moniker even better!

 The paper inside reads:

"Since all Latex is going into the War Effort, our designers have effected this new construction which is just as absorbent, just as durable, and as versatile as the old-style--and it's 100% American mercerized terri-knit.  Slip one on any glass or bottle and you'll find it a remarkable fit!

NOTE:  After using the new HI-JACS, or switching them from large to small glasses, you can restore their original shape by stretching lengthwise."

The whole thing sounds very suggestive!  Or am I just a dirty bird?

 

 Here's a few others I found that are a bit different:

If you're drinking from a can and are as anal retentive (good lord at the suggestiveness rolling around this post!) as I am, you won't want to drink directly from the mouth of the can.  You're in luck!  These little babies take care of that!  And they're in such great colours!!

If you'd like to 'BYOB', you'll need a flask.  I only have two, but boy are they fun little muffins!!

The first is a souvenir flask.

It's covered in leather...which kind of makes it look like Ed Gein's flask, if I'm honest.

On one side it says:

"When your heels hit hard

And your head feels queer

And your thoughts foam up

Like the froth on beer

When your legs are weak

And your voice is strong

And you laugh like hell

At some damn fool song

YOU'RE DRUNK

BY GOSH

YOU'RE DRUNK!"

 The other side has little holes in the leather so you can have a look-see how much hooch you've got left!

The bottom declares it to be from "Gatlinburg Tenn. Great Smoky Mts."

Yeah, the souvenir flask was cool, but are you ready for this????

A little James Bond hideaway action going on here!

Yes, uh huh, it looks like your average everyday transistor radio in it's case, no?

 

Nope!  It's a secret mobile party!!

My dad said he used to take this with him to the Bristol races back in the early- mid '60s...yep, before he was of legal age!  Sneaky little bugger!  Such a rebel, that one!

Speaking of mobile parties, this is one of my best pieces.  When I found it, it still had the paper on the lock, so it had obviously never been opened, let alone used.

Inside is all you need to be a picnic or barbecue bartender.

 

I love  the printed paper bottles!  "My Favorite Brand"

 

Stay tuned for glassware!!

Any of you lot have a family member who fancied himself a mid century Tom Cruise?