The Vodka Party

How to Throw an Authentic Mad Men-Era Cocktail Party – The Inside Skinny

Posted on March 31, 2013 by HostWithTheMost

With all the hubbub surrounding the premiere of season 6 of AMC’s Mad Men, we thought it would be a good time to offer some suggestions for throwing an authentic 60s cocktail party. We’re going to concentrate on the drinks and food and we’ll let you make your own choice regarding the required 60s-style hanky-panky.

What follows is TheVodkaParty’s step-by-step guide to being the perfect Mad Men-era host or hostess. We draw heavily from “How to Give a Vodka Party,” which was distributed by Smirnoff at the height of the Mad Men age. It captures the zeitgeist of the time better than pretty much anything else we’ve seen.

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Barmate – Is that a tall drink on your platter or are you happy to see me?

Posted on July 31, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

The fulcrum from which the swinging 60s swung was The Playboy club. In that brief period between women stepping out from behind the apron to the birth of modern feminism, nothing else oozed the stuff of the liberated man more than The Playboy Club. The clubs were temples to the god of 60s chauvinism, adorned with the modern equivalents of Greek statuary; only these statuesque beauties were flesh and blood…and wore adorable ears over their perfect bouffant hairdos.

In Barmate, Southern Comfort teams ups with Playboy Magazine for a promotional pamphlet that appeared in the December 1964 issue. But don’t let the low cut tops fool you. This booklet is more about “bottoms up” in the traditional sense, focusing on the swingin’ cocktails that Playboy Club members enjoyed in those exclusive enclaves…and now could be enjoyed at home.

Get ready to flirt with some truly swinging cocktails (not a single appetizer recipe here) along with an inside look at the history of the original Playboy Clubs… and the lives of the real Playboy Bunnies who worked within. (All images and links are rated TV-14 at the most extreme.)

Check out this Barmate now!

Just in Time for Summer – Let’s Eat Outdoors – A Mid-50′s Fever Dream of Cookout Kookiness

Posted on June 12, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

Let’s Eat Outdoors – The Yankees had Murderers Row, Notre Dame had the four horseman, Cincinnati had the Big Red Machine. Mere amateurs. Let’s Eat Outdoors has a lineup led by the one and only SPAM with all-meat Hormel Franks batting “clean up.” Also includes guest appearances by Bisquick, Van Camp/s, Dinty Moore and Nescafe. Don’t miss the amazing retro line art and design, a stunning proclamation from the 50′s top style-maker and a seemingly out-of-place recipe from one of America’s first conservationists. Let’s Eat Outdoors is an unqualified masterpiece! Go to “Let’s Eat Outdoors”

God Save the Queen! Celebrate the Diamond Jubilee with the most English of spirits – Gin!

Posted on June 2, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

60 years on the throne. And no, I’m not talking about how it felt after overdoing it at Taco Bell last Saturday night.

Queen Elizabeth II - Happy Jubilee Liz! I’m talking about the glorious reign of Queen Elizabeth II of the UK. Not since that curmudgeonly lady on the Bombay Gin bottle, has a British monarch reached such a milestone.

Today begins an even more glorious four-day weekend of gin-soaked celebrations in honor of the stalwart gray lady. And while your humble host here at TheVodkaParty is from a country based on flipping the bird to Kings and Queens of every variety, I’m also from the region of New England. In fact, I’m from the state that’s home to New London, on the fabled Thames river (rhymes with “games” over here).

Oh, and I like gin.

So, in honor of Her Majesty, I’ve included a selection of vintage gin recipes below, many of which would have been imbibed to celebrate young Elizabeth’s coronation.

Drink up, celebrate the idea that you can be qualified as head of state based solely on a happy accident of birth.

And stay queenly my friends!

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1964 World’s Fair Wonderment – Meet the future at the Heinz Magic Food show

Posted on May 31, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” So said futurist and science fiction author Arthur C Clarke.

And the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair was chock full of sufficiently advanced technologies. Visitors marveled at GM’s Futurama , IBM’s puppet show about computers, DuPoint’s “Happy Plastic Family” that ushered them into the “Wonderful World of Chemistry” and, perhaps most astonishing of all…

Heinz’s “Magic of Food” show, held in the “Theatre of Food” in the “Festival of Gas Pavilion.”

Yes, the “Festival of Gas Pavillion.”

If you’re ready to witness yesterday’s tomorrow, visit the Magic of Food show now. Indistinguishable from magic, indeed.

Classic 1960s Heinz Ads

Posted on May 7, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

Beanz Meanz Heinz

Mad Men season 5 has revolved around the elusive hunt for Heinz Beans as a new client. But did the Ketchup king need the creative magic of SCDP to bring the beans campaign to life? Or were they getting along fine without them? You be the judge with this collection of classic Heinz print and TV ads from the 60s.

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The Mint Julep – Is it the “Peeps” of Cocktails?

Posted on May 3, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

“A mint julep is not a product of a formula. It is a ceremony and must be performed by a gentleman possessing a true sense of the artistic, a deep reverence for the ingredients and a proper appreciation of the occasion.”
– Lt. Gen. S.B. Buckner, Jr., 1937

On Saturday, we’ll again be treated to the “fastest two minutes in sports” – The Kentucky Derby. And we’ll be celebrating it with a treat that has become synonymous with the race itself – the Mint Julep.

The Mint Julep has a long, and one might even say fabled, history as the sweet and genteel cocktail of horse racing’s most famous event. We’ve included four vintage Mint Julep formulas below for your consideration. But consider this:

Is the Mint Julep the “Peeps” of cocktails?

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The art of the cocktail – mixing drinks in mid-century modern style with Fleischmann’s

Posted on May 2, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

Fleischmann’s has a long history in US spirits. They produced the first American-made gin in 1870. By the mid-50s, they were one of the top distillers.

At about that time, the company distributed a small and seemingly simple little booklet entitled “Fleischmann’s Mixer’s Manual.” This handy guide will not only help you mix a better cocktail with tips and numerous recipes, but it will also introduce you to one of the most influential illustrators of the 20^th Century.

So take a moment and enjoy some classic cocktails tip and recipes, but be sure to linger over the clean and powerful design of this little gem. Go to Fleischmann’s Mixer’s Manual.

New Cheez Whiz! – Believe it or not, there was a time BEFORE Cheez Whiz

Posted on April 5, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

“Never, no never before have you ever had anything like Kraft’s Cheez Whiz!” begins the copy in New Cheez Whiz. And they weren’t kidding. You could spoon it, heat it and spread it. “You’ll see for yourself there’s no end to the quick cheese tricks your jar of Cheez Whiz holds.” This begs the question, who is the trick on?

This is the original pamphlet that launched the radioactively golden cheesy comestible. It’s from the year 1953, perhaps the most amazing year in the history of convenience foods. That incredible year saw the introduction not only of Cheez Whiz, but also Eggo Waffles, the Starkist Tuna brand and the landmark couchside culinary achievement of the first Swanson TV dinner.

So imagine what it was like in the dark winter of our discontent when cheese didn’t flow and then bask in the glorious golden summer of New Cheez Whiz.

Vintage Sexist Advertising

Posted on March 19, 2012 by HostWithTheMost

Vintage Advertising Sexism

With the new season of Mad Men starting on Sunday, I thought it would be interesting to take a quick look at how women fared in the “golden age” of advertising. The answer is: not well. Here are a few examples of the best (worst?) sexist advertisements of the Mad Men-era, compliments of our friends at Retronaut.

See the full post for more.

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“A mint julep is not a product of a formula. It is a ceremony and must be performed by a gentleman possessing a true sense of the artistic, a deep reverence for the ingredients and a proper appreciation of the occasion.” – Lt. Gen. S.B. Buckner, Jr., 1937

“A mint julep is not a product of a formula. It is a ceremony and must be performed by a gentleman possessing a true sense of the artistic, a deep reverence for the ingredients and a proper appreciation of the occasion.”
– Lt. Gen. S.B. Buckner, Jr., 1937