Americans love all-in-one gizmos. You know, those things they advertise on local, late-night TV, that chop, slice, dice and make Julian fries. It's just how we're built, and the reason why we can't get enough of Swiss Army Knives.
The drinking world is no different. Contraptions that can do it all for you—open bottles, measure, squeeze, mix, chill, whatever—date from the time cocktails met the Industrial Revolution. Recently, I received an example of the latest prototype in this genre. It's called Bartule, and it combines in one package a corkscrew, a bottle-opener a jigger, a juicer, a coaster (which can also function as a salt rimmer, we are told) and an ice bucket. "The Bartule," relates a press release, "is the only bar accessory that provides consumers with an all-in-one party solution when throwing great social events." It also comes in six colors.
The Bartule is a nifty-enough looking piece of merchandise. I would recommend it more for wine-lovers than cocktail lovers, though. For wine, all you need is a corkscrew, coaster and ice bucket (if it's a wine to be chilled). To mix drinks, you need much more than a jigger and a juicer—notably, a cocktail shaker and bar spoon.
Nonetheless, I was rather pleased with the item. That is, until I visited a nearby flea market in Manhattan and happened upon this little beauty from the 1950s.
It's called a Drink-Dialer and it was made by a company called Apex. I haven't been able to find out much about the company but apparently they also produced a similar device called a Chip-Chop.
