Killing Whisky History, Episode 29: World War II era Black & White with a 1960s chaser

Going monochrome and wistful, I review this 1941 bottling of 8 year old Black & White and its 1960s cousin. Thank you for joining me on this month-long Black & White sojourn!

RATINGS:

1960s Black & White
Rating - 86

Black & White 8 year old, bottled in 1941
Rating - 88

Black & White blended whisky, bottled for United Airlines in 1961

Of all the Black & White bottles this month this one proved to be the most fun to research. Searching for the history of United Airlines quickly leads one right to their logos. Here are three links if you'd like to follow along: one, two and three.

After using a plain blue rectangle with white lettering from 1930 to 1939, United switched to the red, white and blue shield for its logo, trying out four versions of this style over twenty-two years. The final one looked like this:

Here the word "Airlines" has been dropped from the logo for the first time, and this change happened right around the time of their purchase of Capital Airlines. This look was very short-lived, lasting from 1960 to 1961. The shield was then switched to a diagonal spike (or wing?) until 1974 when it was replaced by the Saul Bass-designed U or tulip.

Since the logo on my 1/10 pint-er was used in only 1960 and 1961, I'm going to play things sooooper conservative and say that this bottle is from 1961.

In truth, I tried these last three Black & Whites side-by-side on one swingin' afternoon.

Brand: Black & White
Owner at time of bottling: Distillers Company Limited
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
Age: minimum 3 years
Bottled: 1961
Exclusive to: United Airlines
Alcohol by Volume: 43.4%
(from my purchased 1/10 pint bottle)

NOTES
The nose hints at the previous Black & White, but the fruit notes has moved from overripe to fermented and tropical. Then there are rose blossoms, cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks and a bright grassy cucumber skin note. A wee hint of machine shop. After 30+ minutes some fresh peach and nectarine notes show up. A swirl of small notes bouncing off each other fills the palate: orange, cardamom, nutmeg, chili oil, white nectarine and cucumber. The sweetness never gets out of control and citrus expands with time. There's a good length to the finish, which is highlighted by citrus, baking spices, ginger and toasted almonds.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Could United passengers even taste this stuff while locked in a cigarette smoke-choked cylinder in the sky? Because this stuff is very good. The blenders were successful in creating a lighter style than that of the Johnnie Walkers, Dimples and Teachers of the time, but the whisky isn't watery or boring. I could see this style appealing to a very wide market. It's bright and fruity while also showing off some depth, especially in the nose. Now, a quart of this wouldn't be a bad thing, if enjoyed responsibly. Let's see if I can top this on Friday.

Rating - 86

Black & White blended whisky, bottled 1962-1964

This is the Black & White label style familiar to dusty whisky collectors and well-seasoned scotch drinkers. Used throughout the 1950s, this style's final year may have been 1966(see 1966 ad versus a 1967 ad). As per this month's introductory video, I have a number of these wee bottles.

Figuring out this particular bottle's fill date is partly based on its state tax stamp.

This very cool site says that the 2OZ font was larger than the rest of the stamp print in 1962, though there's no word on if that remained true from 1963 through 1977. I've seen quite a few Wisconsin state stamps with the big 2OZ font, but I'm not sure what year they were from.

I can tell you that there's a faint "64" on the bottom of the bottle — though I cannot seem to take a clear photo of it — so that gives me a potential timeframe to focus on: 1962-1964.

This one went head-to-head with yesterday's 1967-1969 bottling.

Brand: Black & White
Owner at time of bottling: Distillers Company Limited
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
Age: minimum 3 years
Bottled: sometime between 1962 and 1964
Alcohol by Volume: 43.4%
(from my purchased 1/10 pint bottle)

NOTES
At first the nose is very similar to the late '60s version, with its baked pears, Mr. Sketch markers and Mentos candies. But it opens up more and more over time. First come the peaches and anise. Then a slight phenolic note, cut grass and a machine shop. Finally, an overripe fruit note arrives (think melons and stone fruits) and completely takes over. Lots of those overripe fruits show up on the palate. There's also a quirky spicy buzz to it. The combination of those two factors give it a funky rum edge. There's minimal sweetness and no tannins. Notes of mulled wine, red pepper flakes, dried oregano and toasted grains show up after 30 minutes. The finish is devoid of the overripe, funky notes. There are oranges, peppercorns, dried herbs and caramel sauce. Again, no tannins, not much sweetness.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
There was a significant difference between this whisky and yesterday's Black & White even though they were bottled 3 to 7 years apart. This one was covered in thick crazy funk. That one was tannic and sugary. That one was simple, this one was anything but. This B&W calms down at the finish, but before that it's all perky weirdness. No one produces whisky like this now, and I'm not sure if anyone could. It seems closer to rum at times. I'm not sure I could make through a fifth of this stuff, but 1/10 pint is the perfect amount. It was spirited fun. Now onto something else...

Rating - 84

Black & White blended whisky, bottled 1967-1969

The label style of the Black & White being reviewed today didn't last very long, not more than eight years. The key to further narrowing the timeframe are the quotation marks:

Here's a 1966 print ad that shows the previous label style. In this 1967 ad, the label style has changed to the one on today's mini and has the quotation marks. In this 1972 ad, the quotes are gone. The mark removal happened around 1970, per the master administrator at Drinks Planet.

Thought it seems like a tiny change, those quotation marks had been used for almost 70 years, ever since James Buchanan began quoting the name that pub patrons called his whisky at the turn of the century. It was Buchanan's Blended Scotch Whisky, but drinkers referred to it by the bottle and label colors, black and white. Ditching the quotes fully established the brand as Black & White, and cleared the way for another Buchanan's blend.

Time to drink up.

Brand: Black & White
Owner at time of bottling: Distillers Company Limited
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
Age: minimum 3 years
Bottled: sometime between 1967-1969
Alcohol by Volume: 43.4%
(from my purchased 1/10 pint bottle)

NOTES
Full of spirit and oak, the nose leads with guava, moss, vanilla bean, caramel and hay. Then baked pear with fruity cinnamon. Light blue scented Mr. Sketch markers and Mentos candies. The mild palate is lightly spicy and tannic. Bits of vanilla, paper and savoriness. It does have a good mouthfeel and it gets tangier with time. The finish has pepper, paper and tart lemons. It gets sweeter and tangier with time, as well.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
As with the mid-70s mini I'd opened last week, the nose is better than the palate, though there's a smaller gap in quality. There's more American oak character present than I'd expected, giving it a modern tilt that the whisky probably doesn't need. And I'm not sure if the papery notes are due to flabby casks or five decades of unknown bottle storage. The nose's guava note and creaminess of the palate's texture salvage this from Meh Land. But it's certainly a step down from the stuff in the '70s quart bottle I'm enjoying.

Rating - 79

Killing Whisky History, Episode 28: Black & White blended whisky, bottled 1975-1977 (One Quart)

Presenting the second of three Black & White video reviews! And in a different location, with a better comparison whisky! Exciting!

It's a big old quart of '70s scotch this time, so it's a good thing I like the stuff. Oops, I spoiled my take. I guess I'll have to list a rating for it now as well:

Rating - 84

Black & White blended whisky, bottled mid-1970s (1/10 pint)

Next stop on the Black & White Time Train: The 1970s!

I have a mini and a not-so-mini from a similar time frame. Today it's the 1/10th pint.

Liquor bottle liquid volume measurements went metric in 1980, so this 'un is from 1979 or earlier:

The IRS is given a shoutout on the federal tax stamp. That practice ended in early 1977.

Because the bottle's front label style began at some point after 1974, as per print advertisements, I can say with moderate comfort that this whisky was bottled in 1975 or 1976.

The metal cap was fastened very very tightly, which was a positive sign...

Brand: Black & White
Owner at time of bottling: Distillers Company Limited
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
Age: minimum 3 years
Bottled: sometime between 1975 and early 1977
Alcohol by Volume: 43.4%
(from my purchased 1/10 pint bottle)

NEAT
Another lively, pretty nose! Overripe stone fruits, apple peels, vanilla bean, guava juice and celery juice. With time it shifts towards orange and lemon peels, watermelon juice and a pear pastry. Meanwhile, the palate is bitterer and sharper than expected. Very tart citrus and tart berries. Tartness. Not much sweetness. Needs air. Then there's bread pudding with salty caramel sauce. Just a hint of wet cardboard. The finish keeps that bread pudding & caramel sauce note, while adding in almond brittle. Yet it's somehow not too sweet.

ON THE ROCKS
A couple of ice cubes neutralizes it, and it tastes like nothing. Boo.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Firstly, this whisky's sparring partner was the 2018 bottling. I'm not sure how much more often I'll haul out that current version. It's a very different whisky than all the older bottlings. And it's losing what little charm it started with.

Now back to the '70s bottling. The palate is more blend-y than I'd expected, raw at the edges, mix of vivid and flat casks in the center. But the nose is a pure delight. If this fruity, floral style is what blenders meant by "light" in decades past, then I'm sold, at least as far as the sniffer goes. I wish the flavor met it half way. Also the damn thing died on ice, instantly.

On Friday, it's the big bottle...

Rating - 79

Black & White Scotch Whisky print ads, a brief commentary

Every bio about James Buchanan says he was an animal lover. But the following sentence, in every bio, states that he raised racehorses from which he gained considerable financial return. Does that not sound like a man who rather loved money and exploited animals for profit? I don't know, but he did put horses in some of his advertisements. I mean, not wild or free horses, but draught animals:

circa 1903

He did like dogs — as far as I know he did not raise them to race or fight — and per the brand's myth, he got the idea of using wee terriers as part of Buchanan's advertising after attending a dog show in 1920. Though this ad, my favorite, is from 1914:

Though it would be a few additional decades before they graced bottle labels, the black and white terriers, Blackie and Whitey, were the focus of Black & White's print campaigns by World War II. Here are two ads, ca. 1942, that help promote the war effort. Note the terriers' shaded ad space features larger than the bottle itself.

The company went with the "The Scotch with Character" slogan for at least two decades as well. And by the 1950s, the advertising campaigns committed to fully establishing the terriers' adorable, playful characters. I mean, look at these little faces:

And now they're playing American football!

And baseball!

And celebrating Christmas, of course!

Here, in a 1957 ad, they are at the beach:

Now, note that the dogs are portrayed as lifeguards. They're positively dependable, like the whisky. Keep that in mind when you look at this beach-themed ad from 1974:

So, comedy(?), I guess?

Either the dog is turned on by human women, specifically human women who have undergone the sexual humiliation of a suit top slipping in public. Or that humiliation is seen as funny? Or women are being lowered to the level of dogs. Or all the above? And why? And how does that sell whisky?

Not all of their '70s ads were this baffling, but with the whisky industry's historical and current abysmal treatment of women, I thought I'd just dump this one onto the fire.

Let us now cleanse our palate with an image of happy doggos.

We can ignore the awkward cutting and pasting within the image. And the weird background. And that either the dogs or the bottles are in the wrong order. Let us instead focus on the simplicity of the idea. Two dogs, two whisky expressions.

The Extra Light version didn't last long, even in dog years. But Blackie & Whitey live on.

A cheesy hashtag as well as awards won by everything in a bottle, yes. But at least Whitey isn't chasing someone else's tail.

Image sources:

--http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/

--https://www.etsy.com/

--https://www.ebay.com/

--MacLean, Charles. Scotch Whisky, A Liquid History. London, UK: Cassell Illustrated, 2005.