Thursday, September 9, 2010

Italian Swiss Colony

Whenever I've been to a wine-tasting event, the hosts were never dressed like this, and they were much more serious. Mind you, these two seem to be pouring for themselves and ignoring us.  You can't buy Italian Swiss Colony wine anymore, but you can see the old advertisement and jingle on Youtube.

Italian Swiss Colony was one of the most visited wineries in California back in its day. Today it is known as Cellar No. 8 at Asti Winery.
If you would like to find out more about the history of Italian Swiss Colony, click here. Here's another rather dull card of the winery from the 1940s:
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11 comments:

  1. MarySeptember 9, 2010 at 10:56 AM

    That one takes me back, for sure!

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  2. AnonymousSeptember 9, 2010 at 12:11 PM

    Wow, Christine! I can sort of remember the name "Italian Swiss Colony", halfways associate it with wine bottles wrapped like Chianti---now I know the story. Jack/Youngstown

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  3. TracySeptember 9, 2010 at 12:22 PM

    Oh, wow: I would TOTALLY hang out here if this still existed/were near me. This is exactly what we need more of in our society: faux Italian/Swiss wine bars staffed with genial, stereotypically dressed hosts. I would gladly give up our local Panera Bread/McDonalds/"Irish" themed sports bar/franchised bagel shop for one of these...

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  4. AnonymousSeptember 9, 2010 at 1:47 PM

    Tracy, you're being gently facetious, right?
    :-) Jack/Youngstown

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  5. TracySeptember 9, 2010 at 3:04 PM

    Nope. I would totally, TOTALLY hang out there. I might even wear one of the outfits, so as to fit in. Seriously, what guy doesn't like a girl in a dirndl?

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  6. AnonymousSeptember 9, 2010 at 4:01 PM

    Sorry, Tracy, maybe I've heard too much from women who trash traditional dress and modes of behavior to demonstrate their professional "toughness". :-) Look at that photo! Sure, it's posed, but that guy and gal like each other. Jack/Youngstown

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  7. Christine H.September 9, 2010 at 4:13 PM

    Besides that, now that I know about the philanthropic beginnings of the Italian Swiss Colony, I could enjoy drinking their wine. Well, I don't think I have ever tried Italian Swiss Colony, but with cheerful, well-dressed hosts at least the atmosphere would be nice.

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  8. TracySeptember 9, 2010 at 4:58 PM

    They look more than "cheerful" to me, they look like they're planning on getting "naughty." Like I said, it's the dirndl...he's practically salivating.

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  9. Christine H.September 9, 2010 at 8:25 PM

    It's may not be the dirndl - but instead, those irresistible faux lederhosen. Anyway, once they head off for their romantic interlude, the wine is ours to sample as we please.

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  10. AnonymousSeptember 9, 2010 at 8:37 PM

    There is no doubt these two are going to duck behind the counter at any moment- you tourists can pour your own friggin' wine, enjoy...

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  11. PostcardySeptember 16, 2010 at 5:03 PM

    They issued a lot of postcards. I put my favorites on the Vintage Postcard Forum a couple of weeks ago.

    http://postcardcollector.org/forum/comments.php?DiscussionID=914

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