Monday, June 8, 2009

Star Of The Union Bitters ad

This one is from the Red Bluff Independent, and it's a nice ad for a product that was sold in labeled only bottles. Too bad that old Fenkhausen hadn't a clue about putting his proud concoction in a fancy embossed container. All those crude 6th squares that we dug in RB could have held that bitters, or anything else for that matter. I like to my imagination run a bit.Photobucket
Photobucket

3 comments:

  1. Hmmm. not so fast. Please be open to the possibility that an embossed bottle DOES indeed exist, and in fact has been dug, and resides in a handfull of collections. I submit to you the early applied top yellow / green/ olive square with an embossed star identical to the ad, and TM which I believe means "trade mark" not some obscure initials. If you hold the bottle, it becomes easier to envision. Age, where dug, square bitters, western blown, crude as heck. I had one in my collection, but sold it, so maybe someone can post a pic of one? Just a thought...

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  2. ME,
    I believe an example of that bottle was dug a couple of months ago here in the gold country by a Nevada City digger. Warren might be the one to get a picture of it.....
    g.o.

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  3. You just might be onto something there M.E.... I have always felt that bottle was a Western Bitters. I know of one that was dug in the Bay Area about 30 yrs ago. Don't know where it went though.
    Another bottle I always felt was a Western bitters is the amber early 70s case gin bottle that comes both with a single-roll flask top and with a tapered top. Having dug several whole examples and dozens of broken examples over the years, about 10 yrs ago I finally dug one w/ a partial label ! Alas, I could read the word "Bitters", and "S.F.", but unfortunately I must have rubbed against it digging it out, as the company name was wiped out. I went from joy to bummed in like 10 seconds ! My gut has always told me these are Jesse Moore Bitters, but I have no proof, only that they are definetly a bitters
    AP

    AP

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