There are some superb examples of Western bitters that have been posted on this site. I know of collections that are simply stunning to look at, with great early glass. Lately it has become even more difficult that ever to acquire a nice colored Western bitters. Everyone seems to want them, and almost no amount of money will pry one loose it seems. As I unpacked some great glass which I picked up at the Canyonville show, I realized that there are still a few bargains to be had if one looks hard enough, and does not follow the herd. I was able to add a couple colored Walkers Vinegar Bitters to my collection, and placing them in the case with some others made me aware of just how absolutely gorgeous these bottles are. Here are four in various colors. The off colors from regular aqua are as rare as some five figure bitters, and have crudity, and overall appeal that is under appreciated in my opinion. The early 1870s examples blown in San Francisco are spectacular, and can be a bit of a challenge to locate. Maybe some of you could post some crazy Walkers. Does anyone have a whiskey top version? They are the earliest I believe, and are rare. I guess one does not have to spend a fortune to have a collection of Walkers, but the prices do keep rising. Better start grabbing them while you can, or I will.
Great colors ME! You can sure put a nice color spectrum together of these nice early S.F. bottles. Note how these run along the same color lines as the heavy hitters like the Lacour's & Cassin,s and are generally found in the same areas. This is another bottle that is often plagued with the annealing fractures we often see on some of the early SF glass bottles in shades of green. I believe the rarest color is amber which they do come in. I have only seen two of the "whiskey top" versions of this bottle and one amber. Both were dug about 30 years ago out of late 60s pits. The whiskey top was emerald green and base embossed, "W.V.B."
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