The Most Rare Bottles

'The Rare Club' is a selection of interesting and peculiar beer bottles from the general collection

Jacobsen Vintage No. 1 Jacobsen & Carlsberg, Denmark. 2008 barley wine, 37.5 cl., 10.1% ABV The world's most expensive beer bottle. Only 600 bottles were brewed, labelled and individually packed. They were sold for 2008 Danish Kroner per bottle. There are 4 label variations. This beer can still be found on auction websites.
Coronation Ale H & G Simonds Ltd, UK, 1911 Ale Extremely rare bottle made for the coronation of George the 5th on June 22nd, 1911. The bottle is donated by Fred West of Wadworth Brewery in England and is in an almost perfect condition. Typically for pre-crown products it is sealed with cork and band.
DON Øl Carlsberg, Denmark, 2003 70 cl., 7,0% ABV This special beer was brewed for the celebration of Flemming Østergaard - by friends and media called Don Ø – at his 60th birthday. Mr. Østergaard is president of Denmark's largest football club, F.C. Copenhagen, one of Carlsberg's principal sponsorships. Only one crate was made.
1. Brewmaster Jacobsen & Carlsberg, Denmark, 2008 75 cl. Carlsberg's new Danish brewery was named after J.C. Jacobsen and was inaugurated in 2005. The first head brewer was Jens Magnus Eiken, who created 15 new high quality specialty beers, often with breathtaking innovation. He was especially seeking a Nordic identity by brewing with Nordic ingredients e.g. angelica root and sea buckthorn.
Kaptajnens Langfartsøl The King's Brew House & Carlsberg, Denmark, 2007 Top fermented, 70 cl., 6,4% ABV Nils Smedegaard Andersen received a handful of this beer, when he left his position as CEO of the Carlsberg Group. The 7 pointed star is the symbol of Mr. Smedegaard's new company – the Maersk Group. Mr. Smedegaard made a turn around of the old brewery and designed a new master plan for Carlsberg's success in the international consolidation game. He is notorious for his response of day to day problems: "No more excuses – just deliver".
Henriks Bryghus. Pensionist Porter Carlsberg, Denmark, 2008 Porter, 70cl., 6,7 % ABV Retirement beer for former brewery worker Henrik Christensen. Very few employees at Carlsberg have worked so many different places at Carlsberg as Henrik. The back label states 12 positions diversified at every corner of the brewery. However, one thing remained constant during his 35 years - he was always a porter man. Mr. Christensen was granted 81 bottles at his departure. One bottle found its way into the collection.
Guinness Stout Guinness, Ireland, 1930-1940's stout This Guinness is a mystery bottle. Apparently a number of casks washed ashore on the west coast of Jutland in the spring of 1943. The origin and destination of the shipment is not known. An undisclosed number of bottles were filled and labelled in a rather professional manner. However, on these bottles we see a ship instead of the famous Guinness harp. Worldwide no other Guinness stout has a ship on the label.
Coronation Ale Greene King, UK, 1936 ale Extremely rare beer made for the coronation of Edward the VIII. The king abdicated and the breweries destroyed their coronation beers. This bottle was saved by a Greene King staff member and donated to the collection in 2005.
Royal Lager Carlsberg, Denmark, 1932 strong pale lager, 7,15% ABV In commemoration of the visit of H R H the Prince of Wales to Carlsberg on the 26th of September, 1932. Carlsberg's original trademark - the compass card - is clearly visible. Very rare.
Leif P.H. Sonne Carlsberg, Denmark, 2000 dark lager, 4,1% ABV The founder of the beer collection had this beer made for his 65th birthday. Mr. Sonne began collecting beer bottles in the late 60s and donated his collection to Carlsberg in 1993. Rare.
Anker Øl Carlsberg, Denmark, 1982 pale lager, 33 cl., 4,6 % ABV Former PM Anker Jørgensen' s 60th birthday beer. His first name means "anchor". He left school after 7 years, became trade union leader, and eventually PM in 1972 as head of the Social Democratic Government.
Ratcliff Ale Bass, UK, 1869 strong British ale, quart Many beer collectors consider this Ratcliff to be the oldest beer bottle in the world. Few of these bottles are known in breweriana circles. A bottle was opened in the Bass Museum in 1969 and was generally considered to have kept well. The red rhomb trademark was the first registered trademark in the UK.
Imperial Stout Old Carlsberg, Denmark, 1890s porter, 33 cl., 7,0% ABV Extremely rare export specimen in port bottle. Carlsberg's first shipment out of the Kingdom was to Scotland in 1868. Cork and metal bands were used to seal the product.
Special Brew Carlsberg, Denmark, 1950 super strong pale lager, 33 cl., 9.0% ABV To commemorate Sir Winston Churchill's visit to Denmark on the 5th of May 1950. Denmark was liberated by British armed forces at the end of World War II exactly 5 years earlier. V is for Victory or Win With Winnie.
Prince's Ale Bass, UK, 1929 brown ale This beer was produced after a visit to the Bass Brewery in Burton on Trent by Edward, Prince of Wales, on the 23rd of July 1929. Rare.
Lager Beer Carlsberg, Denmark, 1949-51 pale lager, 70 cl. A beer with its very unusual label, yellow with a Viking image, made for export to Great Britain. This design was probably made in order to distinguish this Danish beer from German lagers. Rare.
Polar Beer Carlsberg, Denmark, 1954 pale lager, 33 cl. Polar Beer was especially brewed to commemorate the first SAS flight over the North Pole. Two DC 7's departed from Copenhagen and Los Angeles on the 15th of November 1954. This was a giant step in transatlantic commercial airline service.
Royale Carlsberg, Denmark, 1962 pale premium lager, 35,5 cl., 5,8% ABV This export bottle was first seen in the US marketplace in 1962, and in Denmark 1978. The vase bottle was created by an American designer, Richard Runyon, and it is still estimated to be a perfect representative of minimalist applied art. The vase bottle left the market at 1987.
Boy Beer Tuborg, Denmark, 1937 lager, 33 cl. Export beer with a highly controversial name. Selling a beer with this name and image would be considered to be politically incorrect today. Very rare.
Pilsner Carlsberg, Denmark, 1946 pale lager, 33 cl During and after World War II there were shortages of everything. This is a small, thin label with a rectangular design and no neck label. A treasure among beer collectors.
Table Lager Carlsberg, Denmark, 1962 pale lager, 22 fl. imp. oz Brewed to commemorate Carlsberg's appointment as purveyor to Her Majesty's Court. Highly priced as a collector's item.
Pilsner (HOF) Carlsberg, Denmark, 1986 pale lager, 33 cl., 4,6% ABV The first time Denmark qualified for the world cup in football was in 1986. Carlsberg was one of the primary sponsors. To celebrate this event it was agreed to change the label into the national colours of red and white. The media expressed criticism for vandalizing a national icon and the consumers simply refused to buy the red and white HOF.
Pilsner Carlsberg. Denmark, 1913 light lager, 33 cl., 2.5% ABV This export beer to the Faroe Islands and Iceland never reached its goal. The ship capsized in 1913 and the bottles have been resting on the see floor for almost a century. A original label has been found in our archives.
Easter Brew Carlsberg. Denmark, 1931-1933 dark lager, 33 cl., 7.0% ABV First season beer from Carlsberg was the Easter brew launched on draft in 1905 and bottles in 1931. The rectangular label and its Gothic letters can be seen as a reflection of the success of German Easter brews sold in Denmark.
Christmas brew Tuborg, Denmark, 1999 dark lager, 50 cl., 5,6% ABV Every Christmas the masterminds behind Denmark's most branded beer seek a provocative angel, thereby getting media and consumer attention. This particularly year the bottle came in a Tetra pack resembling a milk carton. The ombudsman could hardly believe his own eyes.
Malt extract beer The King`s Brew House, Denmark, 1938-1940 malt extract, 33. cl, 1,5% ABV The King's Brew House was for a period owned by the Danish Crown. Today Carlsberg brews some of the old brands and a new line of speciality beers in the same tradition. This rare bottle is equipped with a rather modern pull off cap. Often recommended to citizens suffering from malnutrition.
Stjerne (The Star) Stjernen Brewery, Denmark, 1923 pale lager, 33 cl., 4,6% ABV The Star Brewery was part of the cooperative movement and controlled by the Labour Unions. In the 1930s it was the number 3 brewery in Denmark, but was finally liquidated in 1964. Star beer was nicknamed the "blue collar dues"by the working class body.
Alliance Pale Ale Alliance & Carlsberg, 1888 pale ale Extremely rare export bottle from Carlsberg's bottling company for overseas markets. This particular bottle was washed ashore at the island of Rømø. The shipment was on its way to the Danish West Indies - now the US Virgin Islands. We have taken the privilege to re-label this bottle.
Munchener beer Fort, Denmark, 1927-1940 munich amber lager, 33 cl. The Danish Beer Souvenir Association has adopted its name from the Fort Brewery, which only existed for a few years but gained an almost legendary prestige amongst collectors. Very few items are seen today and this bottle is probably the only unopened one in existence. The brewery burned to the ground in 1940 under suspicious circumstances.
Pilsner Carlsberg, Denmark, 1904 pale lager, 33cl. , 4,6% ABV Here we have the very first Carlsberg pilsner with its famous art nouveau label. Danish architect, Thorvald Bindesbøll designed this label in 1904, and for more than a century it has been regarded as an industrial icon. One of the best selling beers of all time.