Wine Sir Walter Gilbey's Establishment Bring Wine to Masses, 1870s Antique Print

Description: Rare original antique print from an 1870s illustrated journal. It depicts the london establishment of Messrs. Gilbey's london liquor establishment, showing the offices, the bonded warehouses, the forwarding floor, the distillery, the printing department, the bottle washing operations and the corking department. Gilbeys' brought wine to the middle and lower middle classes of London. The heavy duty then levied by the British government on French, Portuguese and Spanish wines made them too costly for English middle classes, and especially lower middle classes, which could only afford beer. Henry Gilbey believed these classes would gladly drink wine if they could get it at a moderate price. He was determined to push the sales of colonial, and particularly of Cape, wines, on which the duty was comparatively light and opened a small retail business 1857. The Cape wines proved popular, and within three years the brothers had 20,000 customers on their books. Grocers who dealt in the Gilbeys'wines and spirits were not allowed to sell those of any other firm, and the Gilbeys in return handed over to him all their existing customers in his district. This arrangement was of mutual advantage, and the Gilbeys' business increased rapidly.The print is very large (folio size), measuring approximately 11 x 15 inches (28 x 38 cm). The picture fills most of it, measuring about 9 x 13 inches, with a caption below it. The page is in excellent condition for its age. There is text/photos on the back of the print. See scan for an accurate view of the condition. This print will come with a Certificate of Authenticity. Powered by SixBit's eCommerce Solution

Price: 99.95 USD

Location: Lake Villa, Illinois

End Time: 2024-11-19T15:47:08.000Z

Shipping Cost: N/A USD