I have seen a number of these clear bottles which contain four separate sections. The first I acquired was probably back in the 1970s when I started collecting.
A typical four section bottle
Newer examples are fitted with plastic pour spouts. I see to remember seeing at least one which was fitted with cork and glass pour spouts.
Presumably, this bottle was fancy gift packaging for the US market. I’m not sure if there is a tradition of marketing such bottles in France and Europe. Many are marked “Bottle Made in France” on the base. The contents from the best that I can tell is not always of French origins. I found one example, mentioned below, which is marked “produced and bottled in Philadelphia.”
Most appear to me to have been produced in the 1970s or later. If they had been produced earlier, US law would have required that the bottle carry the embossing “FEDERAL LAW FORBIDS SALE OR REUSE OF THIS BOTTLE.”
You can often find a number of these multi-section bottles on ebay by searching on “four chamber bottle
.”
I have assembled the following information based on labeled examples that I could find:
- Example 1 – marked “Nuyens” contains: Creme De Menthe, Creme De Cacao, Blackberry Flavored Brandy and Triple Sec.
- Example 2 – marked “Cointreau” contains: Cointreau, Creme De Menthe, Apricot Brandy and Cacao Chouao. Base is embossed “Bottle Made in France.” We know that at least the Cointreau is a French made liqueur. I am not sure about the others.
- Example 3 – marked “Marie Brizard” – Anisette, Creme de Cacao, Creme de Menthe, Apry (Apricot Brandy)
- Example 4 – marked “Jaquin’s – Blackberry Flavored Brandy, Creme De Menthe, Creme de Cacao, Forbidden Fruit
Produced and bottled by Charles Jaquin et Cie Phila, PA. America’s Oldest Cordial Producer. Base is embossed “Bottle Made in France” - Example 5 – marked “Mohawk Fait Main” (hand made) Creme De Menthe, Creme de Cacao,Creme de Banana, Creme de Almond
Base is embossed “Bottle Made in France.”
Have you seen any earlier or different examples? Do let me know.
