AboutOrchids

Summertime is a great time to relax with refreshing Storzette, “the Orchid of Beer.” Alas, only the ad campaign remains from this floral appeal to women in the 1950’s. “The original beer for women” was a creation of Storz Brewing in Omaha, Nebraska, and featured a colorful Cattleya on the label. “Created for the feminine taste”, in 8 ounce (237 ml) “queen size cans,” the brand and the ads hearken back to a time when orchids were a real extravagance. Cattleya or Cymbidium corsages adorned women on every formal occasion, from weddings to proms. First Lady Mamie Eisenhower frequently wore an orchid corsage (here’s a later picture of her wearing a Renanthera, a Vanda relative.) Storzette never had strong sales, and the brand didn’t last long, but Storz Brewing kept “the Orchid of Beer” slogan on other products for a few years.

Over the decades, breeding advances and mass marketing helped promote orchids from fancy corsages to common houseplants. I don’t know how much orchids inspired beer sales, but nowadays they appear standard in perfume ads. Storz Brewery closed in 1972.

Thanks to Brandon Vogel’s blog and Chronicles from the Analog Age blog for their histories and photos.

Explore posts in the same categories: Misc, Photos

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 28th, 2012 at 8:54 pm and is filed under Misc, Photos.

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