Historic lantern-style tankard glass revived

The lantern tankard has its origins dating back to the late Victorian era. 

It was the market-leading pressed glass from the 1920s to the 1950s, as its 10 transparent panels forced brewers to improve the quality and clarity of beers and ciders.

Beer is best campaign

The tankard was also star of The Brewers’ Society’s ‘beer is best’ campaign throughout the 1930s and 1950s, but eventually fell out of fashion as lighter ales and dimpled jugs became more popular in the 1960s.

However, the tankard has now been faithfully recreated by Stephensons, a 149-year-old supplier of catering equipment to the pub, restaurant and hotel trade.

Stephensons managing director Henry Stephenson said: “The lantern tankard is one of the finest handled glasses ever produced, combining elegant visual design with functionality."  

Forgotten classic

He continued: “Authenticity is increasingly important to UK consumers, evident by the meteoric rise of the craft ale industry. We believe consumers will welcome the return of this forgotten British classic.” 

The tankard is already appearing in numerous pubs across the country. One of the first pubs to serve drinks in the new vessel was the Partridge in Stretton, Cheshire. Commenting on the glass, managing director and owner of 16 Hospitality, Edward Barlow, said: “It really is a delightful re-imagining of a classic. We recently started to serve of our own 16 Ale in the lantern tankard and it has gone down a treat.

“Already we’ve seen that people are genuinely intrigued by the heritage, and when you twin that with how good it looks, it’s a winning combo. One customer even jubilantly claimed that the tankard enhanced the whole drinking experience!”