Plantinga Cognac/Plantiac Promotion Material

'100 Guilders Back' tag (1987)

The Dutch Guilder was the official currency of the Netherlands until the switch to the Euro was made on 1 January 2002.

 

"10 or 100 Guilders back" promotion tag, rear. Note that it mentions other "Plantinga quality products": Plantinga Jenever (gin), Boeren Beerenburg, Bessenjenever (berry gin), Frambozen- (raspberry brandy) and Kersenbrandewijn (cherry brandy).

Pocket Knife (1988)

In 1988 or 1989 you could get this mini pocket knife with a bottle of Plantiac. It contains a knife and a bottle openar. The pictures show it folded out and folded in.

 

Bamzaaistokjes (1989)

An approximate translation of the verb "bamzaaien" is "drawing straws" or "hand guessing". This game is played in every pub worth its salt. There are four reasons for this: The game is simple, it is fun, there are no winners but only one loser, and it increases the pub owner's revenue. It can be played with a few matches (an old Dutch word for which is "bammen") or, indeed, these bamzaaistokjes ("bamzaai sticks").

All players (from two to endless) get three matches at their disposal. Every player takes a number (or none) of these matches in their hand, which should be unknown to the other players. Next, the players are supposed to guess how many of these sticks are in all hands in total. With four players the maximum would be 12. The hands are opened and the person who guessed the right number can call himself the winner.

Fake guessing is not permitted. Taking two sticks in your hand and then guessing less than a total of three (with four players) is not allowed and will cost you a round of drinks.

After the first round, the game continues as before. When the game ends depends on the players' thirst. The easiest - and fastest - way is playing an elimination match. Each winner leaves the game. The last player left loses and orders a round of drinks.

Playing Cards

A Plantinga Oude Klare playing card from between 1941 (Plantinga was a "CV" from then on) and probably 1955 (from then on, "Leeuwarden" was also mentioned everywhere). Picture from drank.verzamelt.nl.

 

Backs of three playing cards from the period before 1941, when Plantinga was still an "NV". Rightmost picture is from drank.verzamelt.nl.

 

Playing cards from the time when, like above, Plantiac was still called "Plantinga Cognac". The rightmost is from after May 1955, when Plantinga took over de Louwrens Dijkstra winery in Leeuwarden. From that time on, "Leeuwarden" was always added below "Bolsward" on all materials. The centre picture is from drank.verzamelt.nl.

 

A few playing cards from the "Plantiac" era. The leftmost is from 1972 or later, as this was made after the fusion of Herman Jansen with Vlek.Vlek and Kabouter are both brands of gin.

 

The (so far) most recent type of Plantiac playing cards.

Pouring Caps

To allow for any alcoholic drink to be poured stylishly, so-called "schenk-stoppen" (pouring caps) were devised. Obviously there are Plantiac versions of that.

Left picture from Stefan Posthuma, the rest from drank.verzamelt.nl.

Not an actual pouring cap, rather a purely decorative one. These were given to people who had been at the Plantinga company for 25 years.To the right the card you got with it.

 

The "ordinary" version, mass-produced plastic pouring cap.

 

Glasses

Various Plantiac glasses from before the 1970s. The leftmost glass is a general Plantinga glass, by the way.

 

These appear to be identical, all made in honour of the Plantinga centennial (no Plantiac centennial). Position of the print and the shape of the foot vary, though.

To the left a collection of "100 year" glasses, to the right what such a glass should preferably look like.

 

Ashtrays

Metal ashtray. Picture from drank.verzamelt.nl.

Ash Tray, made of opaline glass (opaque coloured glass). Judging from the mention of Vlek(je) Genever this is from after 1972. Made by Gerdt Glas, Rotterdam. Diameter is 14,2 cm.

 

Another one, this time Plantiac - Sonnema - Vlek (and thus also from after 1972). Diameter is 17,3 cm.

 

Other opaline ashtrays. Judging from there being no more mention of "Leeuwarden" together with Bolsward, these are at least from after 1974. The diameter is 17,2 cm. Left picture jeneververzameling.be, the two other pictures are from another ashtray (the word "Vieux" is now below the word "Plantiac", for example).

 

And yet another. The diameter is 14,5 cm.

 

Key Ring

Probably pre-dating the 1980s, but after 1974 (as there is no mention of Leeuwarden), this is a Plantiac key ring. Red and black colour can be discerned in the letter grooves. Picture by Sidney Zeegers

 

 

Light Signs

A 1960 picture postcard of a street called Buorren in a town called Langweer, in Friesland, the Netherlands. Note the Plantiac sign attached to the facade of "De Drie Zwaantjes, Buorren 22.
Click here
to see what the street looks like on Google Street View (November 2010). The Plantiac sign is gone.

 

A Plantiac light sign at café De Paard in Oldelamer (Friesland), picture from 1973. This café, which lay opposite the church at the time, was demolished in 1974.

 

This is a version of the sign that only has one side. It can be seen attached to the left side of the frontage of café "De Posthoorn" at Marktplein in Bolsward. This picture was made in 1981. The sign is no longer there.

 

An (at the time) abandoned pub at the Meppelerweg 89, Steenwijk, Overijssel province, the Netherlands, summer 2008. Note the Plantiac sign. Click here for the Google Streetview (from July 2009, still including the Plantiac sign).

Late 2011 it was renovated as a restaurant called De Oude Vesting. The owner, Tom Klein Hazebroek, still had the Plantiac sign in the attic and sent some pictures...

Another example of these signs, this one originally from a bar in Stroobos, Friesland province, Netherlands. It was claimed to be from the 1960s. The detail shot shows what is probably the manufacturer's name, "Bas A'dam" (i.e. Bas Amsterdam). Picture credits J. Hoiting.

This is an entirely different version of the sign, entirely flat (though the picture gives the illusion of a bulge). This sign was from Restaurant De Brug, Tilbrugstraat 5, Zuidveld, Drenthe province, the Netherlands. Picture by Bastiaan Plantinga.

 

And another one, plastic, flat like the one above, but is seems that one of the sides has been exposed to the sun a lot, and turned white. This sign was attached to the front of Café De Hoek (later De Horne) when the current owners bought it in 2004. The premises have since been converted to a physician's centre. The address: Tolhekbuurt 28, Nij Beets, province Friesland, the Netherlands. Picture provided by Douwe, when he put it on Marktplaats.

Picture taken January 2007 by zoom.nl user sn@rfie. This was taken somewhere on the Dutch island of Texel.

 

Stained Glass

Stained glass (Dutch "gebrandschilderd glas") is a centuries old technique of painting glass. Vinegar, natural gum and various pigments are painted onto glass, after which they are burned onto the glass in a high-temperature oven.

Beautiful stained glass "Plantias Us Vjeu" item, 25,5 cm diameter. This probably stems from the early 1970s, as it is clearly based on one of the 1971 Plantiac advertisements (see here). This particular item came from either café Bos in Rotsterhaule or café Hielkema in Haskerhorne (both Friesland province).

Thermometer

Exactly dating this thermometer is difficult, but it has to be from between 1955 and 1974 because it also mentions "Leeuwarden".