Spittoon: We Spit So You Can Swallow
Antique Victorian / Edwardian Sommelier or wine growers testing kit for Bottled wine. Not sure how it works properly but that is what I was told it was when I bought it yesterday. It has a large Silver or chrome plated suction spring and a double tap earlier plastic cork, three large piercing bars, 3 smaller ones. and 8 tape fittings. End of syringe fitting is marked I and A. All in fitted linen and velvet lined dark cotton covered box with Art Nouveau style button clips.
MAKER : Maker marked on the plunger part of syringe Haupiner
CONDITION : In Good Used Condition for age.
AGE : Victorian / Edwardian
SIZE : Size of box 10″ x 5″ x 1½” high . Size of Syringe 8″ long closed. Size of long push spikes 5½” long.
Assuming it is, as described, for testing wine, what would they be testing exactly? How would it work? Any idea of value?
[more images after the jump]
We Spit... So You Can Swallow
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just had a thought – would this be for home wine making as opposed to commercial production?
Dad says it’s a kit from the film “Dead Ringers” with Jeremy Irons. I haven’t seen the film myself but I’m prepared to believe him.
Hmm. It looks like a cork with taps on each side. Am wondering if this isn’t an Edwardian preservation system for wine, where the syringe would be used to draw air out, not wine? Just a thought. It doesn’t look like the right size or shape to draw wine out of a bottle?
I’ll keep looking for references to it, but I’d send it to someone at UCDavis and see if they can identify it. You can use the contact form at: http://wineserver.ucdavis.edu/contact.php
I reckon it is for mainlining vino directly into my brain as Adrian suggested in his email!