When did Jim Beam stop making decanters?

Between 1955 and 1992 , Jim Beam collaborated with the Illinois-based ceramics company Regal China to produce thousands of decanters.

When were whiskey decanters popular?

In the 1950s and 1960s , Mid-Century Modern design became popular, reflected in whiskey decanter designs. These decanters featured clean lines, simple shapes, and bold colours and were often made from materials like ceramic and plastic.

Are decanters worth anything?

Today, antique glass decanters are sought after by collectors, antique enthusiasts, and individuals interested in vintage or decorative glassware. They are valued for their historical significance, craftsmanship, and the charm they bring to table settings and interior spaces .

Which is older Jack Daniels or Jim Beam?

Jim Beam , originally known as “Old Tub Bourbon,” was founded in 1795 by the Kentucky farmer Johannes “Jacob” Beam after he created a new style of whiskey with his father's recipe and an excess supply of corn. Jack Daniel's was established in 1866 by Jasper “Jack” Newton Daniel.

How long will whisky last in a decanter?

As you pour the bottle out and into the empty decanter, the whiskey is going to swirl around. This creates a lot of play between the whiskey and the air, essentially kickstarting the oxidation process from the start. For this reason, whiskey only lasts around three months in a decanter.

Are whiskey decanters worth it?

So, are whisky decanters worth it? Ultimately, the query of why to use a decanter for whisky boils down to personal preference. Without a doubt, they add an elegant touch to drinking whisky and certainly make a visual statement .

When were Jim Beam decanters made?

From the 1950s to the early 2010s , Jim Beam created a range of ceramic decanters to hold its bourbon. Most of the designs were released in the '60s, '70s, and '80s to appeal to collectors.

How can I tell how old my Jim Beam is?

Most bottle manufacturers molded the year into the glass at the bottom of the bottle in 2-digit format. You'll often find it in the lower right portion when looking at the bottom (some dates are much easier to distinguish than others). This will usually tell you–within a year or two–when the whiskey was bottled.

How many Jim Beam decanters are there?

How Many Different Jim Beam Decanters Were Made? It's said there were 1,650 Jim Beam ceramic decanters made between 1955 and 1971. It's hard to determine the exact amount as many of these decanters were given away as gifts or put into storage and forgotten about for decades.

When did Jim Beam make train decanters?

But the most impressive item in the collection is the Jim Beam train. This set from the late 1950s or early 1960s includes the train tracks, a water tower and 11 cars – all still full of whiskey.

Drink up the history of American whiskey in kitschy collectible decanters at SF's Bottle Club Pub (2024)

Some 15 years ago. Brian Sheehy "caught the collecting bug" while scouring antique fairs and flea markets for authentic Prohibition-era artifacts to fill Bourbon & Branch, the San Francisco speakeasy that would come to redefine co*cktailing in the city.

As he and his team at Future Bars continued opening new drinking establishments, the hunt for interesting decor continued, with one theme that kept popping up: decorative whiskey decanters emblematic of midcentury Americana. He bought them and stuck them in storage without a second thought. Then, serendipity walked into opening night of Sheehy's subterranean downtown bar Local Edition: A woman who had worked in the same Hearst building for 50 years came into the bar to celebrate her retirement and she offered up her late husband's collection of bottles, a stash of 100 of those same collectible decanters, whiskey still intact.

"At the end of the night, we opened one and tasted it and it was phenomenal. It blew us away, and we knew we were onto something. So we put them in storage and said if we ever got enough of these decanters, we would open a bar," Sheehy remembers.

Then, fate came knocking in 2020 when Izzy's Steakhouse restaurateur Sam DuVall passed away. His daughter called and offered up her dad's collection of hundreds of decanters. This year, all these forgotten pieces of American history took their place on the top shelf—well, every shelf—at Future Bars latest venture, Bottle Club Pub.

The story of these decanters dates back to Prohibition when everyone was drinking whiskey. But all that changed after WWII, when the troops returned with a taste for flavors and beverages from around the world. Interest ticked up for wine, beer, rum, and vodka, and America's whiskey distilleries were left with way too much product and no one to drink it. Desperate to offload the excess, Jim Beam created specialty bottles, commemorating the brand's home state of Kentucky, to be given as gifts. Commemorative decanters caught on and folks began collecting. The very first "bottle club" was born in Berkeley in 1952, followed shortly after by a second in San Francisco. The bottles enjoyed a heyday until the 1980s.

It is estimated that around 3,000 unique whiskey decanters exist today; Bottle Club Pub, which is decorated with Mad Men vibes and vintage advertising, can boast a collection of some 1,600 decanters which act both as display and as vessels for co*cktails and large batch punch bowls.

In 1958, the first Bottle Club Association held a convention. There were about 200 people in attendance, but as it gained popularity and they reached 1,000 attendees, the group decided to make it own decanters. Though Sheehy hasn't been able to identify which year this foxy decanter duo was made, he notes the props—the lady fox holds a rolling pin behind her back while the male fox holds a cane—as a hint at their era of origin.

(Courtesy of Bottle Club Pub)

America's Cup 100th Anniversary, 1970

This decanter was made to mark the the 100th anniversary of the America's Cup, which took place in Newport, Rhode Island. The victors from each race over the years are listed on the back of the bottle. Sheehy was especially excited by this bottle because it contains the very sought after Pappy Van Winkle whiskey, made by Stitzel-Weller Distillery. If someone found this bottle completely sealed today, they'd have "struck gold," he says The bottom of the decanter says "Old Fitzgerald," which Sheehy explained is the name of the distillery where Stitzel-Weller moved to in the 1980s, a tidbit of history for true whiskey enthusiasts.

(Courtesy of Bottle Club Pub)

RNC, 1962 / DNC, 1976

Even the Republican and Democratic National Conventions got in on the decanter action, giving specialty bottles shaped like elephants and donkeys to candidates and party members. The 1962 elephant decanter is also a great example of how the distilleries would try to pass off old whiskey (which people did not want at the time) as younger than it actually was. They aged it by month, with "100 months" being more ambiguous than eight years. At the 1976 DNC, there were two versions of the democratic donkey.

(Courtesy of Bottle Club Pub)

Kentucky Derby, 1969

More 100-month-old Jim Beam whiskey, this time for the 95th Kentucky Derby in 1969. The back of the decanter calls out Aristides, the very first winner in 1875.

Foremost Liquor, 1969

This one speaks to the times. Sheehy explains that as decanters became popular, businesses such as, in this case, the Chicago-area liquor store Foremost Liquors, began approaching the distilleries to commission designs of their own. These would often be gifted to the top sales person at the store.

// Bottle Club Pub is open 4:30pm to 2am Tuesday through Saturday, 555 Geary St. (Union Square), bottleclubpub.com.

Drink up the history of American whiskey in kitschy collectible decanters at SF's Bottle Club Pub (2024)

Some 15 years ago. Brian Sheehy "caught the collecting bug" while scouring antique fairs and flea markets for authentic Prohibition-era artifacts to fill Bourbon & Branch, the San Francisco speakeasy that would come to redefine co*cktailing in the city.

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